Turtle, it's what's for dinner.

While I was driving home on Friday afternoon, Kyle called my cell phone. He frantically asked me where the camera was. He needed the camera! Where is the camera?!!? Please don't say the camera is in your purse!!

Guess what? The camera was in my purse.

When I received the call, Kyle was sitting in his truck on the side of the road that runs just outside of our neighborhood. He had seen something about to cross the road and being the inquisitive man that he is, he had to get a better look. Turns out, it was this lovely creature that he found.

Obviously, I got to the scene with my camera, thus the picture. It is a giant snapping turtle. Here is Kyle touching the thing with a shovel.
I was about to run back to the car after I saw that thing snap at him. It was pretty quick too, as far as turtles go. Kyle was debating what to do with the thing. He didn't want it to get ran over on the road, but really, what do you do with a snapping turtle?


Something tells me this little love wouldn't be a good pet for Jackson. (Do you see that tail? It looks like an alligator.)

Thank goodness, the rightful owner of the turtle lives in a house that is about 30 yards away from where Kyle found it. He saw the flash from my camera and knew that we must have found his turtle! The man was seriously overjoyed.
Here is Rightful Owner, with his 25 pound turtle. And the best part of this entire story is this: He was fattening the turtle up so he could use it in a STEW. Yum yum. He even invited Kyle and me over to enjoy some delicious turtle stew. Unfortunately, we had plans.

It's captivating stuff, really

BooMama is hosting a Before & After thingy at her blog. I wanted to join in but, to be honest with you I wasn't feeling up to doing anything major! So I decided to tackle my unbelievably messy bathroom cabinets. Y'all, I had enough mostly empty bottles of lotion to grease down a whale. I combined some, and threw out a lot. I also got rid of a ton of old makeup. I think I had about 7 bottles of crusty foundation that I trashed. I'm sort of ashamed to show these pictures to the world, but here it is!

THE BEFORE'S

THE AFTER'S

Thanks so much to BooMama for the inspiration. Now if I could only transform the old office/spare bedroom/storage space/catchall room into the nursery!

Praise Jesus for rocking chairs, beautiful views, cabins in the mountains, re-reading old favorite books, convertible Mustangs, Shrimp and Grits (mmmmmmmmmm), inside jokes with your husband (yo love salsa!!!), mini wedding cakes, and 5 wonderful years of marriage. We had an amazing weekend!



Run, don't walk to your local grocery store and get the ingredients for these Shrimp & Grits. These were on the menu at our wedding, and I was a little intimidated to make them myself, but they turned out so wonderfully. It really is a pretty fool proof recipe.

And I never looked back

Edited to add: Our wedding anniversary is actually September 20. But, we will be in a cabin far, far away from any internet connection. Even if there is an internet connection, I'm not taking my laptop. So, here it is. A day early, but the sentiment holds true every day of my life.


Five years ago today, I woke up to a gorgeous early fall morning. It was a perfect day! Sunny, cool, and breezy.

Five years ago today, I sneaked over to the house that would soon be mine and my husbands for a hug and quick talk with my fiance. He gave me a beautiful diamond necklace to wear that afternoon.

Five years ago today, I went with my best friend for a leisurely afternoon at the beauty salon. We had our hair done and I headed home.

Five years ago today, I put on my makeup in the tiny little bathroom at my parent's house. I made sure that it was perfect with lots of waterproof mascara.

Five years ago today, I got in the car with my momma & daddy. My nervous daddy drove me to where my wedding was to take place and didn't say a word the whole time. He just kept his steady 50 mph down I-85. As I was screaming on the inside for him to HURRY UP!

Five years ago today, I sipped champagne and ate strawberries with my bridesmaids. We got dressed and headed out for pictures.

Five years ago today, my mother zipped up my gown for me. She adjusted everything until it was just right. She stood back and looked at me and somehow managed to hold back tears. She knew that if she cried, I would just fall apart!

Five years ago today, I hugged my grandmother and silently prayed for a long a beautiful marriage like she had with my grandfather.

Five years ago today, I waited in a small bedroom with my sister and peaked out the window to see people filing into the beautiful tree lined ceremony area.

Five years ago today, I clutched my daddy's arm and walked down to the man who was waiting to become my husband.

Five years ago today, I married my best friend.

Kyle,

You are the fixer of all broken things, the maker of the best pot of coffee & grilled cheese sandwiches, the calm in the storm, the laugh through tears, the Daddy to my babies, the strong and gentle leader for our family, the logical one, my sanity. I love you with everything that is within me. You bless me and our family on a daily basis. Thank you.

I love you,

S.

We are expecting....

Yesterday Kyle and I went to our 20 week ultrasound. Our appointment was scheduled for 1:20 in the afternoon and that was the latest 1:20 that I've ever experienced! To say that I was anxious is an understatement! I not only wanted to find out the sex of the baby, but I wanted to see that the baby was healthy and progressing along just as it should.

We arrived at the doctor's office at 1:15 (which was all the way out in Tucker. A good 45 minutes from our house) and I wasn't taken back until about 1:43. Y'all my bladder was about to burst! The precious ultrasound technician could immediately see on the machine that I needed to "relieve" my bladder and let me go on to the bathroom. So after that was taken care of she started doing all the routine ultrasound stuff. The baby's heart was beautiful and we could see the 4 chambers, brain looked great, spine was all there, both femur bones, etc. Praise the Lord! I was filled with such wonder and awe just laying there looking in on a great mystery. My sweet baby is not a mystery to God, and I feel like I was snooping around on His handiwork. I have said it before, but I just don't understand how someone can see something like that and not believe in God. It was a beautiful and precious moment that I will never forget.

Finally we got around to the gender part. Brenda, our ultrasound technician kept turning around and smiling at Kyle. She asked us what our first child was. I was staring at the screen trying so hard to figure out why she was smiling and giggling. AND then it was quite obvious... we are expecting a little BOY! A little boy who has already figured out that he has a penis and he likes to play with it. I'm not even kidding you. I have the pictures to prove it. But for posterity's sake, I will refrain from posting them! Let's just say that it was very easy to tell that he is definitely a boy!

I'm thrilled. A little girl would of course have been just as lovely, but I am so glad that Jackson is getting a little brother. Daddy is just as tickled and proud as he can be. Our only hurdle now is figuring out a name! We have a middle name picked out, but we are torn between a few different options for the first name.

Thanks so much for all of your sweet comments and prayers that were lifted up on our behalf. Y'all are really the best!

Pregnancy brain...

Edited to add the acutual awards. I must have been in lala land yesterday!

I totally forgot the reason why I even started the last post. I'm calling pregnancy brain on that one. Anyhoo... I received 2 awards and I need to pass them on. I am honored to get the "Kind Blogger" and "Friendship" awards.
About a year or so ago I had really just started reading blogs, and knew a few ladies from church who kept up with them. I had gone to Carol's blog through someone's else's link and really enjoyed reading. Then one night at choir I saw her, and kept thinking to myself, how in the world do I know that woman? It was about to drive me crazy until it dawned on me that I had visited her blog! I finally decided that I just had to talk to her and tell her that I had found her blog. Y'all, she is like a blogging super star. She had an article printed in the P31 magazine and everything! Her writing is so heart felt and humorous and always glorifies God. She really is just as sweet in person. Thanks so much for the award, Carol! Go and visit her over at Sheep to the Right! Now, I would like to pass these awards to...........

*My sweet sister, Megan. Seriously, the person who is ultimately responsible for bringing me to Christ. She was such an amazing role model as we were growing up. Love you!
*A friend that I have known forever, and one of my bridesmaids, Stephanie.
*This lady just found out that she is expecting her first baby, and she was my boss for one summer. (An amazing boss, by the way!) Donna.
*I met Lauren during one of the most stressful times of my life! Dr. Aiken's Anatomy and Physiology I & II would not have been the same without her. She is a registered nurse now and has worked so hard to get through school!
*And finally, Robyn who is also expecting her first little baby! She is only a few weeks behind me. I met Robyn at NGCSU and she is going to be the best mama ever!

So thanks again, Carol! I really am honored to get those awards from you!

Getting down to bidness

September is here! Oh my word, I just can't believe it. August was a very full month with lots of new stuff for us. All of these new things just made the month fly by.

Our first new experience in the month of August was putting Jackson in a big boy bed. We hyped this up to him for quite some time and let him pick out his new decor. Of course you know what the child picked. Thomas the Train. Big surprise, huh? I laugh at myself now, because before I had kids I always said I would never let my children be covered in character stuff. Well, God does have a sense of humor and gave me a little boy who is completely obsessed with one character in particular. I just figure now that if it makes my baby happy, then, why not? I don't have any pictures of Jackson's new big boy bed, but here is the picture courtesy of the Target website.
Jackson has done really well in the new bed and he seems to enjoy his newfound freedom. We did use the "Nanny 911" method. Which is the first time they get out of bed you lovingly put them back in. 2nd time they get out you put them back in and just simply tell them "back to bed". The 3rd time you just plop them back in without saying a word. It really did work well for Jackson. He is getting up quite a bit earlier now and coming into our room, but that's ok. We just turn the tv on for him and snooze away.

Our 2nd big new experience is potty training. I know I've mentioned on here a few times about trying to get Jackson to go to the potty, but he really never seemed ready. I was about out of his last box of diapers, and I decided for him that it was time! He was definitely developmentally ready, just a bit lazy with the whole thing (typical man). So, we headed off to Target (sensing a theme here?) and got him a big goody bag together. Going #1 was a non issue. He had that pretty much down in one day. Going #2 was a little challenging, but this past week he has gotten that under control. Praise the Lord! I wouldn't say that he is 100% potty trained, but more like 95%. So I really am excited! I'm glad we'll have a small break from diapers until the new baby arrives!

Lastly, Jackson started preschool yesterday! He is in the older 2's class at Hebron which goes on Tuesday's and Thursdays. He woke up yesterday morning with a very low grade fever, but I decided to send him on anyway. I'm totally inexperienced in this arena. I debated for 2 hours about what to do and finally decided that he was certainly well enough to go. He didn't have a fever when I dropped him off, and didn't have one when I picked him up. So I think I made the right decision. He had a great time, and was super excited about snack time and playing on the playground. But the poor guy was completely tuckered out when he came home. We ate a quick lunch and he took about a 3 hour nap. Today he feels fine, with no fever at all. Here he is in his first day of school outfit. So preppy and cute! Love it!In other news, I'm almost halfway through my pregnancy. I am 19 weeks and counting! I'm feeling great, and feeling quite a bit of movement from the baby. (He/she is actually kicking away right now. Do we have a future blogger on our hands?) We go next Tuesday for the big ultrasound. And YES, I am finding out the sex. I'm way too much of a planner to not find out! I even tried to bump up my appointment to this week because I'm so impatient. Too bad they were all booked. Please pray that the ultrasound shows a healthy little one. Boy or girl really is a non-issue. As long as everything is normal and healthy, I will be so happy with either. If my instincts are correct, it is a boy. But I was also totally convinced that Jackson would be a girl. Who knows!

I hope y'all have a great week. And I'll post as soon as I can on Tuesday to update on what the sex is!

Abba said it best. "Money, money, money, must be sunny in a rich man's world."

The past few weeks have been rough. ROUGH. We have had a series of unfortunate events with the machines in our life. My car broke down requiring an expensive repair, Kyle's main lawn mower completely died needing a whole new engine. It was in such bad shape that after much thought and deliberation we decided not to even have it repaired and buy an entirely new one. And the kind of mowers that Kyle uses are not cheap. Commercial grade = $$$. I won't go into all of the details about our misfortunes, because really, it is just depressing. I started to type it all out, and I thought I needed to start over because people would need a Xanex by the time they got to the end. Let's just say to sum it all up that we have been stretched and financially strained after all of these mishaps.

But oh my word, how our God has taken care of us. I can't even type this with out tears filling my eyes. For those of you don't know, Kyle's main line of income is landscape maintenance. We are so thankful for all of our maintenance customers, because really we wouldn't survive month to month without them. He rarely does any installations at all. It's not that he can't do them, it is just that maintenance is a much more steady income. There is more profit in installations, but a lot of times they are few and far between. Every once in a while someone will call Kyle for a bid on an installation. For some reason this past month lots of people have been requesting quotes on major landscape installation projects. Just this week, 2 different bids were accepted and scheduled for the end of this month. There are also a couple of very promising jobs that look like will be scheduled very soon. I'm not writing about this to boast. Kyle is very talented at what he does, and he tries to be very competitive about pricing, but THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH HIM OR ME. If you don't get anything else from this post, get that. It does have everything to do with God.

Did God make my car and Kyle's mower break down? No. Things like that just happen; it is a part of life. But God has used this situation to teach some very important lessons. He is faithful. He cares about us. He wants Kyle and I to love each other through the hard stuff. He wants us to trust Him. He wants us to realize that it is all His anyways.

Kyle called me this morning with more amazing news. One of our maintenance customers just wanted to pay us for about 6 months in advance so he doesn't have to worry about writing a check every month. This has never happened before. The total amount he is paying us will almost fully pay for my car to be repaired. This is no coincidence. God provided this for us and I will not let the opportunity pass without praising Him.

Thank you, Lord. Thank you for your faithfulness. Thank you for your provision. Thank you for caring about my family. Thank you for your love. Thank you for your lessons. I don't deserve any of this. But You give freely.

"Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows." Matthew 10:29-31

Oh, just you watch out.

Kyle and I headed out to dinner the other night and I was so sorry that I didn't have my camera. I mean, prime blogging material was right there in the parking lot of Chili's. We got out of the truck and the first thing I noticed on the back of an SUV was those little stick figures that are supposed to depict your family. You know, the ones. Momma stick in a cute little dress, Daddy stick in his business suit, kid sticks with the cheerleading uniform on or football in hand. Here's an example if I'm not being too clear.

Well this SUV that we encountered displayed them all. Momma, Daddy, 2 kids, and even a dog. But there was a not so subtle difference with this stick family. DADDY WAS MARKED OUT. A huge "X" was literally drawn through his entire body. I wish that I had my camera because it really was too funny. I pointed it out to Kyle and told him that he just better watch out and be on his best behavior, or... X.

Alert! Alert!

As I mentioned in the last post, we had some family photos done last night. The photographer came to our house and just started snapping away! We headed to Little Mulberry Park for some outdoor pictures and she was just great. Kyle and I kept joking that we had a babysitter for the afternoon. While she was taking pictures of Jackson they would just traipse all over that playground and he had a new best friend. She was quick too! She already posted a little sneak peak on her blog. Go check them out at her blog. I would post one here, but stupid me forgot to ask for permission. I'll get on that though, because I think the one of all 3 of us would be an amazing header for the old blog!

Unfortunately, Avery is moving to Texas at the end of this month. But she is going to be coming back in our area occasionally to book sessions. I know for sure we will be booking again!

Fun times

Hot husband teaching adorable son how to bowl. MELTS MY HEART!!! We took Jackson bowling for the first time last week and we had a blast. Look, he even got his own little pair of bowling shoes. He actually had a higher score than me in the first game. I really stink at bowling, but it is so much fun! If y'all live anywhere close to Dacula, you need to go to the brand new bowling alley. It was so clean and nice. I've never been to a bowling alley where I actually felt safe using the restrooms. Good times, good times!

Jackson and I packed up for the weekend and headed to visit with family in North Carolina. My mom graciously went with us too. We all hopped in the car on Friday morning and had such a fun time. Jackson had another first while we were there. First ride on a LIVE horse.

My aunt Robyn led him around on her son's horse. He was a little iffy about actually being on the horse, but he loved petting them and looking at them. There were 2 mules in my grandmother's pasture, and Jackson just kept begging to go over there and see them. We had to tell him that the "horsies are taking a nap", to keep him from darting across the road to go see them.

It wasn't all fun and games while we were in NC. Mamaw always has something going on. SO, we picked blueberries, picked green beans, picked cucumbers, etc. I can't say that I did all of that. I stayed back and watched Jackson some of the time while Mama and Mamaw slaved away. Mamaw was lying down taking a little afternoon rest while Mama and I went and picked blueberries on Friday afternoon. Y'all, picking blueberries is not fun. You have to dig into those bushes, and move them all around, and stretch, and bend, and you get the point. We brought our cool whip bowl back full of blueberries, and I was pretty proud of myself. After Mamaw woke up she asked us why we hadn't picked more! Too funny. She really is a workaholic at the youthful age of 87.

We did get some relaxation while we were there too. Lots of front porch sitting went on.
As far as my memory goes back, I can remember loving this front porch. I would sit in my Papaw's lap and laze the afternoon away. We had family gatherings on this porch. My best friend Mandy and I were swinging too high and broke the swing. (We promptly got a stern talking to by Mamaw who told us that we needed to go on a diet. Then she offered us some home made pound cake with strawberries.) I would climb the rails on the porch and pretend that I was in a Broadway musical. Lots and lots of good memories. And this weekend I watched my little one play away as I sat on the swing. That is what they call full circle, y'all.
It was nice to get home, but it was great to get up there for the weekend. It was one of those "good for the soul" kind of trips.

This week is going to be even more busy, so I really needed that little weekend! We're having family pictures done on Wednesday. Do any of y'all stress over this like I do? We're having the pictures made at our house, which is even more stressful because everything has to be clean! You can check out the photographer here. She takes the most gorgeous pictures and I can't wait! We're also heading down to Florida for a long weekend. So.... should be fun! I'll be back next week with an update and some pictures!

Slowly, slowly, slowly I'm starting to feel more like a human and less like a sloth. I'm heading towards my 12th week of pregnancy and everyday I feel more energized. For a few weeks there, it was pretty rough. It was all I could do to get home from work and get dinner together and have Jackson in bed. I don't remember being that tired when I was pregnant with Jackson, but I guess being pregnant when you already have another child is a whole different ballgame.

Summer has been full and lovely, though. We've had lots of great time outside and lots of time with loved ones. Here's what I found Jackson doing one night when I was watering the garden: I know, we're in a drought. But I don't think he had it on too long. That spicket is pretty loose, so he managed to turn it on himself. I think it was on just long enough to drench himself good and for me to run in and get the camera. Every kid should have this experience, right? Sweet summertime.

Jackson has also become kind of obsessed with youtube. You remember this from a few years ago?

Here's Jackson's version


Please excuse my excruciatingly annoying voice in the video. Try to focus on the cute little boy who is dancing. Do I really sound like that? Wow. Jackson is so animated when he sings the song, but gets a little shy in front of the camera. It is hilarious, though. I promise you that.

Our 4th of July was great. A day full of swimming, laying out in the sun, lots of good food, and fireworks. What can get better than that? Here's the little man with a sparkler:
That just screams danger, right? A 2 year old with a lighted object in his hand. But we all walked away unharmed. Here we are at the fireworks, trying desperately to get a family picture. This is the best out of all of the attempts:Kyle's talking, Jackson's not looking at the camera, and I... well for starters, it's obvious that is way past my bedtime of 8:00pm. But we did our best.

What else, what else??? Oh, WE AREN'T HAVING TWINS. I know I had informed some of you that this might be the case. The midwife thought at our first ultrasound that she possibly saw two babies. But our 2nd ultrasound determined that it is just one little peanut in there. I never really felt like it was twins anyways. If it was, I think I would have gone into a mild state of shock. But the one little one is doing great with a strong little heart and seems to be forming beautifully!

I can't think of much else that needs updating right now. We've been pretty predictable lately. Work, eat, sleep, play, etc. I am going back to part time hours. That is a blessing, for sure! I hope you are all doing lovely!

I'm trying, but I've got nothing

1st trimester pregnancy brain has set in. I've been trying to come up with some clever post, but it is really just taking too much thought and I feel like if I have to think that hard to come up with something, I really have nothing good to write about. So, here is a list of what my life has been like in the past couple of weeks.

1. Sleep. No matter how hard I try, my eyes won't stay open beyond 9 pm. Last night Kyle was so sweet and brought me a yummy coffee home. With caffeine. I've been trying to stay away from the stuff, but last night I thought, what the heck? I'll have my coffee and stay up a little later with Kyle and watch a movie or something. I was zonked out on the couch approximately 10 minutes after drinking the coffee.
2. Jackson has really been a hoot lately. He's been going through this stage where he is a little confused on why Mommy and Daddy are sometimes called by Kyle and Sarah. He's been especially hung up on the whole Daddy & Kyle thing. A lot of times he chooses to use Kyle instead of Daddy. I try to correct him, but it seems like it just makes him want to use Kyle even more. Last night Jackson was perched at the dinner table between Kyle and me and I asked him who he wanted to take him to swimming lessons. He looked me dead in the eye, pointed his little thumb towards Kyle, and said "This guy". We could not stop laughing about that one all night.
3. As I mentioned, Jackson is in swimming lessons. He is really enjoying them and loves going every night. He is not scared of the water at all, so I thought that made swimming lessons even more necessary.
4. I'm hungry. A lot. This was not the case when I was pregnant with Jackson. I don't know what my deal is, but my stomach is seriously growling through out the day. My mom suggested that I do the smaller, more frequent meals throughout the day thing. Today is my first day trying that and it really seems to help. I also feel a little more energized. Hallelujah!
5. JACKSON WENT PEE PEE ON THE POTTY LAST NIGHT. Hallelujah x 2! Keep your fingers crossed for me that we're starting a trend here.
6. My first doctor's appointment is next week. Kaiser is set up that your first appointment is with a midwife and after that you can choose a doctor or stick with the midwife. Jackson's doctor was the best. Seriously, I am pretty sad that our insurance won't cover him now. But since this insurance is what we've got now, I suppose I'm going to have to get over it. Any readers have experience with a midwife? I'm seriously thinking about going that route.
7. I keep thinking of super yummy stuff to eat. I know, I'm a little early in this pregnancy to be having cravings but so many different things sound good. I guess it is just because I'm trying to be very conscientious about my diet, anything fattening sounds great. Some of the cravings are: Varsity chili dogs and onion rings, Paula's cheese biscuits with strawberry butter, pancakes, cheese steaks, etc. Too bad I never crave healthy things. AND I FORGOT, COCONUT CREAM PIE! Mmmmmmmm.

Anyways, enough with the randomness. That is my life as of now. I'll let you know when I am a little more creative.

Fidelity and the Suburbs

I met some girlfriends tonight to see the highly anticipated Sex and the City. I know, I know. Sex and the City was an entire series, and now a movie founded on principles and values that for the most part I don't align myself with.

But I had to see it.

You see, at some point in my life, I identified with the characters. I watched these women and longed to be in the big city, fabulous, dressed in all the most wonderful labels, high heels on, and independent. And please, don't let me forget, money out the wazoo and any man wrapped around my pinky finger.

Sitting in the theater tonight, I realized something. I have changed. I no longer identify with these women. They seemed foreign to me, and not that long ago the ladies seemed like family. Dare I say, I felt like I could have been the 5th gal sipping Cosmos and talking about my latest conquest.

Nevertheless, I did enjoy the movie. But that is it, it was just a movie.

I walked out of the theater in my Target clothes and got into my Saturn and drove to my modest suburban home. While I was driving home I had the windows down and the oldies cranked up. My thoughts were on if we should have donuts or biscuits for breakfast the next morning. I walked into my home on my swollen pregnant feet, and kissed a man who had worked all day in the hot sun. But this sweet man came home and watched a spunky 2 year old so I could go out with friends.

I don't know about you my friends, but I don't think life can get any more fabulous than this.

Not so much premenstrual

Life has been a whirlwind the past week. In my last post I explained my insatiable appetite for all things chocolate and attributed it to being a little "PMSy" as Kyle likes to call it.

Not so much.

I'm pregnant! I guess that was my issue with the chocolate last week. I'm in the very early stages, about 5 weeks along. (A due date sometime in late January.) I really couldn't be any more over the moon than I am right now. Kyle feels the same way. And even Jackson knows that there is a baby in my belly.

I covet your prayers for this pregnancy and the sweet little one that is growing inside of me. Please pray for my health and the baby's development. So far, I feel great. Just exhausted at the end of the day. I'll be making my first doctor's appointment sometime this week after I get some insurance stuff settled. I'll keep you all informed!

Psalm 139: 1-14

O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.
You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.
Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I take the wings of the dawn,
If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
Even there Your hand will lead me,
And Your right hand will lay hold of me.
If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,"
Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.
For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother's womb.
I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my heart knows it very well.

Just so you know

+

+

DOES NOT equal 100 calories.

But when you're a little, no, A LOT premenstrual, the 300 calories of chocolate goodness is soooo worth it.

Oh what a wonderful morning

You know, those hard wood floors were really a great investment. They have added beauty and loveliness to our home. I adore them. They made our living room look 10x bigger than it actually is. And my allergies have been so much better after the carpet was gone.

But this morning I love them even more. It was so much nicer to clean up the 4 piles of cat puke off of the hardwood floors, instead of carpet.

Here's hoping that my day is better than the first part of my morning.

What is my problem???

I think I'm hormonally imbalanced. For some reason I can't quit laughing this afternoon. Seriously, I keep thinking of old memories with old friends and I am giggling out loud. I hope I don't have a brain tumor like that guy in Grey's Anatomy last night. Gosh, that would stink. Or maybe I'm still hyped up from my vacation last week. Which, by the way was amazing. I'll have some pictures uploaded of that soon. We had such a great time.

Here are the memories that are running through my head, in no particular order:

1. Eh.... wait. I can't tell that one on here. It's a little inappropriate and would be very hard to explain where anyone else would find it funny.
2. The same friend who I'm thinking about in #1 emceed a beauty pageant at a local nursing home one year. I don't guess this in itself is funny, but if you only knew him you would die laughing. He is more than a little freaked out by old people. I don't know how in the world he got hooked up with that gig. I think he did a duet with the reigning Miss Medical Arts. PRICELESS.
3. I punched my sister in the eye one time after a huge fight. I know, not funny again, but it is cracking me up right now. At the time she was also my boss. She worked as the paid intern for our high school ministry at church and I was a lowly intern. I worked with all of my friends and even the guy who is mentioned in the above memories. My sister walked into work the next day with a black eye. My friends had already been informed of the previous nights shenanigans. We were laughing hysterically all day long at my poor sister. Luckily, she forgave me. I think she will even laugh about it now. Love you Megan.
4. A very long time ago a big group of my friends and myself used to go porta-potty tipping. To be honest with you, I was never directly involved with the tipping. I just watched from the bed of a truck. Well, I guess I would be considered a co conspirator since I drove the truck a couple of times for the tippers. I don't know why this was so amusing to us, but it provided entertainment for many a dull summer night.

Ok, I've gotten some of the laughs out now. I apologize for boring you with these random memories, but oh my goodness they make me giggle when I think about them. Oh to be young and foolish again.

My morning devotional

This morning my mom called @ 5:30 to let me know that she would not be meeting me at the gym for our normal work out. I was not upset about this at all. Yeah, I could have gotten up and gone by myself. But I decided to sleep in. I woke up at 6:57 and promptly realized that it was going to be a rush around kind of morning. I need to be in the shower by 6:45 to be on time.

I have a touch of the O.C.D. I enjoy accomplishing certain tasks in the morning. My routine usually goes something like this:
*Work out (didn't get this one done. I was ok with that.)
*Come home and have my morning devotional/ prayer time
*Shower
*Put on makeup
*Go and get Jackson up
*Watch a little tv with him
*Get him dressed/ fed
*Feed myself
*Dry hair
*Put on some clothes
*Out the door to drop off Jackson with his Grandmama or Nana

Waking up late threw a big fat wrench into my routine. It happens at least once or twice a week and when it does I rush around like a chicken with it's head cut off. I get ill and short with my family. I feel empty because I haven't filled up with Jesus. Or food. So needless to say, grouchiness ensues.

I had finished putting on my make up and rushed through the house to Jackson's room to get him out of bed. I walked in and there my little man was standing in his crib. He had that precious ear to ear smile on his face. This is also a part of my morning routine; walking into the room of a little boy who greets each new day with a smile. I opened his curtains and adjusted the blinds to let some light into the dark room. I picked up my little boy and he was singing something. The theme song to Bob the Builder, I think. As I started to walk out of the room, I noticed that the sun was coming up and you could see it perfectly through his window. I stopped, turned around, and carried Jackson to the window so he and I could take a quick peek at it together.

And God met us there.

We talked about the sun and how God made it and how He commands it to rise every morning. We talked about how beautiful it was. Jackson said that it was "oreeenge". We said thank you Jesus for the sun. We also thanked Jesus for a new day. Quietly in my heart, I thanked God for the Son who washed me of all my sins and hatefulness. And thanked Him for still loving me even when I am harried and have pushed Him off to sleep in a few extra minutes. You see, Jesus wants us all day. Not just in the little time slot I have alloted him at 6:30 in the morning. And He is willing to meet us anytime.

Thank you Jesus for meeting with me today. I don't deserve your presence or your love. But you give it abundantly. I love you.

I think his father put him up to it.

Last week was glorious. We had several days that hit the wonderful temperature of 75+ degrees. I'm not usually a shorts kind of gal, but since our air conditioning kicked the bucket last September and we had yet to replace it I had to bite the bullet and put a pair on. (By the way, it is amazing to be married to a man who knows really skilled people. As soon as we started getting hot weather my hunk of a man called one of his contacts and close friends to come over and fix the AC. THANK YOU Randy Peacock for replacing our AC Unit for us. You are wonderful. I'm sure you never read this blog but in case you do, I LOVE YOU AND YOUR AIR CONDITIONING CRAFTINESS!)

Anyhoo. Back to the whole short story. Pun intended my friends.

So I put on the shorts after I got home from work. I was about to start cooking dinner but I went into the living room first for a little play time with Jackson. I sat down on the floor and watched him play with his trains for a minute. I was sitting criss cross applesauce and Jackson decided that he wanted me to read a book to him. He came and sat down on my crossed legs and immediately started giggling. Uncontrollably. He then turned to me and said, "Mama's legs are tickly." I was like what? What is he talking about.

He was definitely talking about my leg hair. Yup, my leg hair was so long that it tickled my child. Wowza.

And you know what I did? I shaved. A whole 2 days later.

My poor husband.

Please join me in prayer today for this family.

Philippians4: 4-7
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

My husband.

This picture is of my husband and his 6 siblings. You can click on the picture to get a better look. My man is the 2nd from the end on the right. You can tell he has a problem with being shy, right? The one next to him is the equally shy and reserved Zachary. (Zachary works for Kyle sometimes). Please pray that someday they can break out of their shells. Thank you.
The poor guy really is pitiful.

An open letter to the Sprout Network

Dear Sprout Network,

First off, let me tell just how delightful I find your station. I am aware that you are owned and operated by PBS. I know I can trust you to broadcast quality, educational programs for my child to enjoy. Although I try to not let my child watch too much television during the day, we have especially enjoyed watching the Goodnight Show with the always lovely Nina and her sidekick Star. I love how my little boy learns a new sign language sign every night. His personal favorite is "construction".

My distress with your network stems from one small problem. No, make that LARGE problem. I would assume that you are aware of the fact that children thrive off of routine and schedules. WHAT WERE YOU THINKING IN CHANGING YOUR NIGHT TIME LINE UP???????????? Since my son was about 1 year old our routine has consisted of: dinner, bath time, brush teeth, Goodnight Show, read a book, snuggle, bed time. Let me be a little bit more specific, the shows that we have watched on the Goodnight show have been The Bernstein Bears and Thomas & Friends. After those 2 shows are over I take my little man and get him all snuggled into his bed. And might I add, he has rarely given me an ounce of trouble with bed time. Because HE THRIVES OFF OF HIS SCHEDULE. Ahem.

As we turned on the television this past Tuesday, I noticed there was a change in the line up. I didn't really think much of it. It was April Fool's day and I thought it was cute that your network decided to enjoy the silliness. Whatever. I assumed that everything would be back to normal. My child didn't understand the "silliness". He asked to watch Thomas but I was able to distract him. Much to my chagrin the next night was still messed up. NOT COOL SPROUT. NOT COOL. What are you thinking? You have replaced my son's 2 favorite shows with Calliou. Really? I would go out on a limb and say that Calliou is about the worst children's show ever. EVER. But I had to sit there and suffer through it, hoping with all my heart that Jackson would watch it and forget about his other shows. HE DIDN'T FORGET. The poor child just kept asking me over and over if Thomas was coming on. No baby, Sprout has screwed with us.

Of course, bed time has been way more difficult this week thanks to your horrible decision to "mix things up". I still haven't figured out a new night time schedule. I don't think my son or I can tolerate Calliou. So thanks Sprout. Thanks a whole ton.

Sincerely,
A really ticked off viewer

I love me some Oprah, but...

I apologize for taking a serious turn here with this post. But I couldn't ignore this video. My mother in law sent me an email with this link in it today, and I was totally blown away. Please link over and watch the video.

So beautiful, so true

This post really sums up the way I feel A LOT of the time. And I think a lot of people can relate. I don't have anything else that I can say today that will come anywhere close to the caliber of Melanie's post.

2 very small matters

What in the world is up with Paula Abdul's gloves on A.I. tonight? Really? I mean reaaaaaaaallllly, Paula?

and

I'm a little tired of the horrible acting going on over at The Biggest Loser. Please stop making these poor people who are just trying to lose some weight try to act out a "natural" commercial for Orville Reddenbacher's 100 calorie pack popcorn. I'm sure it is lovely popcorn and all, even though I have never personally tried it. I take my popcorn with butter dripping off of it and a liberal dusting of salt. There's nothing 100 calorie about that.

I'm just sayin'.

Well you see, I've been busy

Warning: This post is going to have a larger number of pictures than normal. I am not responsible for your computer blowing up from trying to load them all. I'm just trying to get my point across (and give photo evidence) that I've been busy and not lazy.

First of all, we have been in full blown wedding season here at the Van Nus household. Kyle is one of 7 kids. And 2 of those 7 thought it would be crazy and fun to get married within a couple of weeks of each other. It has been crazy. Fun... eh... I'm not so sure.

I kid, I kid. It has been fun but a teensy bit stressful. You see, Kyle was asked to be the best man in both weddings, Jackson was asked to be ring bearer in both weddings, and I have been asked to be a bridesmaid in one of the weddings. With all of the activities that go into a wedding it has taken some strategic planning and coordinating to get ourselves at the right place at the right time. We have been at a wedding activity every weekend since the first week of February. This weekend is the grand finale, with the last of the two weddings.

I really can't tell you how much it means to us to be a part of these people's most precious day. We are truly blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Here is the precious Sara. Yes.... there are now 2 Sarah Van Nus' in the world. (Even though we disagree on the proper spelling of Sarah. Just remember, my spelling is the Biblical way and basically that is like God approved it.) She was the most beautiful bride and I don't think I've ever seen a bride that was as calm and collected as she was right before the wedding. I don't have a picture of Brian and Sara together yet. Which is just as well, because Brian would have just mucked it up. Again... kidding. Love you, Brian!

Here's Jackson and his sweet cousin Abby. They were perfect and walked down the aisle with just a tiny bit of coaxing. SO cute!
Here is another sweet shot of Jackson in his tux. I loved the red and white. It reminded me of the Wedding Singer.

Here are the two crazy kids that are tying the knot this weekend. Erik and Michelle are just too cute. I thought Erik would be the eternal bachelor, but when Michelle came around that changed quickly. I think this picture is perfect. You can just see that they are so in love. I'll post some pictures of their special day as soon as I get some.


In between weddings, we have been lucky to get to visit with my side of the family as well. My mom, sister, and I spent some time together having a garage sale. You know the saying, "A family that garage sale's together, stays together". Or something like that. Anyways, my sister Megan packed up her 2 kids, along with all of her garage sale junk, and headed on up to Dacula.

Here is our sweet nephew, Eli. Do you see that mischievous look in his eye? I swear this child is part monkey. He'll climb anything!


And this little fat man is Sawyer. (Eli's little brother.) I promise you, I could just slurp him up with a straw. This kid is just 3 months old and weighs over 15 lbs. We call him "Sawdawg".


Here's Jackson sitting in the middle of our mess. We spent all day Thursday getting all of our stuff put out and priced. Thursday was a glorious day with not a cloud in the sky. Our garage sale was to take place on Friday and Saturday. Friday rolled around and it poured all morning. Then Saturday rolled around and it snowed. Yes... snowed. We about froze our tails off, but we all walked away with a pretty good profit and a lot less junk.




Since our weekends have been pretty packed, I knew that Jackson and I would have to get a little quality time in together during the week.

So we headed off to our favorite spot, Little Mulberry Park. Here's Jack on the seesaw.

Here he is feeding the geese at the pond. Did you know that geese are terribly territorial? It was so fun to watch Jackson watch them.

And of course a trip to the park would not be complete without swinging. Jackson was getting a littler perturbed with me taking his pictures. He kept telling me, "No picture, Mama. Faster, faster!"

And here's the big man enjoying an ice cream at Grandmama's house.


We've also been working on potty training with him. He did really well the first day. And it's kind of been down hill from there. I'm not pushing it. I just let him wear his underwear and pee on the potty when he wants to. Of course the underwear are Thomas the train.


Here's a big smile for the camera. He love's his fire engine hat. He runs around the house screaming, "weewoo weewoo weewoo". (That's his fire engine noise).

So, there's your proof. I've not been a lazy blogger. I've just been very very busy.

Well, maybe just a wee little bit lazy.