Christ's love through my 5 year old

Today was a tough one. I feel like I haven't had a good nights sleep since... well, my birthday I suppose. I was tired and running errands with my 2 kids, which is a recipe for cranky mommy. Just to get to our first errand of the day, Target, took an act of Congress. We purchased the required "popcorn combo" that is necessary in order for me to be able to buy anything that I actually came there for. I had the genius idea to give Raegan her very own Starbucks cup full of popcorn that she could hold all by herself. She has a tendency to scream bloody murder if she thinks you are taking what she refers to as "mwine". My sweet Raegan Marie twice looked me square in the face and turned her VERY full popcorn cup upside down and on to the floor. I believe my head turned in to something out of an old Warner Bros. cartoon. Red face, steam coming from my ears, etc. Logan is so in tune to my emotions and what is going on. He immediately piped in with, "It's okay mommy. Look, I'll give her 1 kernel at a time.". He even helped me clean up Raegan's "offense" from the floor of the shoe department. I fully felt the Lord's presence in that moment as He spoke through my sweet boy. Even in mommy melt-downs at Target the Lord is there. From the fullness of His grace He continues to bless me through the loving acts of my son.

Tonight while the kids were playing together in the family room and I was working in the study, I overheard this conversation between Logan and Raegan.
Side note: Logan's nickname is "Bubby" and Raegan's is "Bwee"

Logan: "Bwee, let me see your face."

Raegan: "Okay Bubby."

Logan: "Bwee, you're beautiful. More beautiful than all the other babies."

Raegan: "Thanks, Bubby."

Seriously! My heart was about to leap from my chest it was so full. It still is as I type this out. God is so good to continually show up on days where I am feeling the most low, most aggravated and most sinful.

Being 34

Last week I celebrated my 34th birthday with the greatest family that the Lord has richly blessed me with. It was a fun day and people showered me with love, affection, cards and gifts.

My sweet husband, who couldn't remember where I had stashed the birthday decorations, was quick thinking and came up with his own. He had these lovely pictures up all over the house for me to wake up to.

That man keeps me laughing on a daily basis. Oh and please don't be jealous of my fabulous hair. I know you are in the process of coveting as I write this.

I got to sleep in until the glorious time of 10:15 and was greeted with a piping hot Grande Vanilla Latte and fresh donuts from the bakery at the grocery store. My sweet little Logan also lovingly picked these beauties out for me.

He also brought me a beautiful mug with flowers on it and a box of decaf tea that he picked out especially for me. He is the sweetest thing on the face of this planet.

I received so many sweet cards from dear family and friends full of lovely, heart-touching words that were SO good for my soul. They made me want my birthday to last for more than 24 hours so I could live in that amazing feeling for as long as possible. I think we tell ourselves so many ugly lies about who we are on a daily basis and it is so refreshing to read that people don't view me the way I view myself.

My wonderful sister in law Amanda treated me and my kiddos to lunch and we had fun stuffing ourselves with Mexican food. Yum! Then later in the afternoon we met my brother and his family as well as my sister and her family at the mall for some water sprinkler play time for the kids, some shopping for me and delicious food for all at Brio Tuscan Grille.

After dinner Scott and I got home, put the kids to bed and sat in front of the TV eating my delicious Coldstone Creamery cake he had gotten me. It was a perfect way to end such an amazing day. I still can't believe I'm in my 30's. When the heck did that happen? I have to say though, I'm liking it so far and feel so much more secure in who I am as a person and that is ALWAYS a good feeling.

Thanks to my awesome husband for making my day so special and for all my family and friends who celebrated with me. You guys gave me an amazing birthday! THANK YOU!!

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To remember:
After getting ready on Sunday to head out and do a little shopping I was in my bedroom and Raegan sauntered in. I accidentally let a burp slip out and didn't think much of it. However, right as I turned around I see Raegan standing there and she says "excuse you piggy!!". I burst out laughing as that is something I say to her whenever she burps. Hilarious!

Logan has been in a crazy phase of saying things "smell like cheese". He says it to be funny and it has caught on in our house. I was in my room today and Raegan was sitting on the stairs doing heaven knows what. All that sudden I hear "I smell like cheese" coming out of her mouth. She is too much.

A date I'll never forget

Those who have kids know how rare dates are with your spouse. When you are able to get one, making the most of it is TOP priority. My fabulous sister in law asked to keep our kids so that we could go out. She is one of only a handful of people that I trust implicitly with my kids. I know that when I'm absent, she loves them like I would and that means so, so much. She encouraged us to make a day out of our date and so we quickly got to planning.
My wonderful spouse found a fun Irish Pub for us to have brunch at. We rarely ever venture to the area known as "Shockhoe  Bottom" in our city. It gave us the feeling of being out of town or on vacation since we were in such unfamiliar territory. The restaurant was called Sine (Shin-ay) Irish Pub. We ordered brunch cocktails and entrees with names like "The Notorious P.I.G. omelet".

Mimosa's and Bloody Mary's were necessary for our next activity.

One Word: DELICIOUS!

Me and my anniversary present - Love it!

The next part of our date might come as a surprise to some people. I've been thinking about doing it for years. I just couldn't decide or commit to the design. After giving a lot of thought to what makes me, me and what defines me it hit me. So, what better way to spend our day together sans kids than to get a little ink.

We did our research and settled on River City Tattoo Shop.

First I picked out my font

Then my tattoo artist came out and free-handed this beauty. I was sold.

First line wasn't so bad. I'm thinking, "Hey, I can handle this".

Then things got real. I was trying to find anything to focus on, childbirth style. Nothing was working, so I bowed my head and prayed for my tattoo artist. That the Lord would pursue his heart and that somehow, someway, even through my little tattoo that he might come to know the Lord as his Savior.

So here it is. "Faith". It's my spiritual gift, it defines who I am and what I believe in. Hebrews 11:1 ~ Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Scott and I finished out our date by seeing The Campaign at the movie theater. It was fun to laugh and be carefree for a little while. Then we grabbed some dinner at Cafe Caturra and toasted our wonderful date day. It was fantastic and much needed.

So a big thank you to Gergana for keeping my kids for 8 solid hours and for feeding them, loving on them and making sure they had a fun time. You are the best!

Another big thank you to my wonderful husband for a special, fun and wonderful date. It's one I'll never forget. XOXO.

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To remember:

Recently if Raegan asks for another cookie, or another story at bed time and I happen to say "no" she'll say "Awwwwwwwwww MOM! Come on!". She seems too little to be saying things like that :).





Water park and nap mat cover

Two of my nephews are in town for the week so my parents, myself, my kids and the boys went to a water park today. Despite losing track of one of the boys for about 20 heart-pumping minutes, we had a great time. It was fun to let loose and enjoy some fun in the sun and water.

I had hoped to sign Logan up for swimming lessons this summer but, it's one of about a thousand things that I haven't done. There is always next summer. In the mean time it's fun to watch him jump in to a safe level of water.

My mom with Logan and my nephew Jon

The place was packed with summer camps and day care centers, but there was plenty of room for everyone to play and have fun.

I think Miss Raegan's favorite part of the day was being with her Pop Pop. She thinks he's pretty great, which he is. She is a fantastic judge of character.

I love that Logan always has time to stop and give his baby sister some love. He spends half his day pushing all of her buttons and making her scream at the top of her lungs, and the other half being a wonderful and loving big brother.

Raegan had so much fun holding my hands and bouncing up and down in the water. Very shortly after we heard thunder and the lifeguards had everyone get out of the pool. We grabbed a table and ate some lunch. Shortly after more thunder rang out, lightning lit up the sky and they closed the pool. It was an early end to our fun morning, but we're thankful for it nonetheless.

While Raegan napped I was feeling crafty. I thought about doing some painting in my family room, but changed course in order to cross something important off of my "before school starts to do list". Logan's nap mat needed a cover and a few weeks ago I took him to the fabric store to pick some fabric out. With school less than 3 weeks away I thought I better try and get it done in case it was disastrous and I ended up having to order one. I've had my sewing machine for less than a year and this was only my second project. You can read about my first project here. For the record, I have come to find that it is certainly NOT cheaper to make your own halloween costumes or nap mats at home.

I got to measuring, cutting, pinning and pulled out my sewing machine. It went so smoothly. I couldn't even believe it. My sewing machine didn't jam once and I was able to get this project done in only about an hour and a half. Part of that time I was tending to children's needs, so it didn't really take me all that long. My stomach was full of butterflies as I went to slip the cover over the mat. It fit like a glove! Woo Hoo. I am really liking this sewing machine stuff. If I could just find some awesomely priced fabric that would make home projects worthwhile, I just might have found my new favorite hobby.

 





Giving up the ghost and cha cha changes

Over the weekend I had a chance to do some serious cleaning in our master bedroom. Our room seems to be the catch all for things that don't have a home, the kids paraphernalia, baby clothes that people have returned and that I need to organize and put away, and so much more. I've been having some issues with insomnia for the past few weeks and thought it couldn't hurt to try and make my sleeping environment a little bit more tranquil. So, I got down to business. Giving items a home, re-organizing, cleaning out my closet, vacuuming, dusting and changing bed sheets.

We have decided that 2 kiddos is the perfect number for us, so I'm thinking of having a major consignment type sale sometime in September. Our house is busting at the seems with all things baby and since we desperately need the space it's time for it to go.

As I was organizing our closet I found a bunch of clothes that I've been hanging on to. You know the ones. The jeans I fit in to 8 years ago and swore to myself I'd get in again. The shirts that I loved but are now too tight in the belly. The dress I wore once to a wedding and never fit in to again. I'm tired of living with the constant reminders of my shortcomings so it was time for them to go.

I believe that there is a time and purpose for everything. Right now my time and purpose is in being the best mom and wife I can be. I can't do it all. I think some of it stems from the postpartum depression I've suffered from since having Raegan. That's a post for another day.

I was able to fill 3 huge bags and 1 smaller bag with great stuff for the sale I plan to do in September. It feels so good to cleanse all of this stuff out of my closet and out of my sight. Now my closet and bedroom are clean, organized and most importantly tranquil.

After 13 years of marriage, 2 kids and the same bedding, which had a huge hole in it, we were able to get a new quilt, shams and bed skirt. What a better way to treat myself after a day of cleaning then with fresh, beautiful bedding. It worked out well since Raegan happened to have an accident on our old comforter that morning. I just wrapped it up and took it straight out to the garbage. So here is the new bedding...

Love it!

I have grand plans for new curtains, lighting and a fresh paint color. I painted those stripes 9 years ago and loved them, but now I'm sick of looking at them. That seems to be a running theme for me. *Smile*

If you're looking for a birthday gift idea for me (there are only 8 shopping days left), a Target gift card would be awesome.

Tell me, lest I forget who I am to you

The world and the people in it can be VERY loud in telling me who I am. Who my husband is. Who my kids are. It can be downright depressing, defeating and humiliating. This day ended in huge disappointment. I went running to the Lord looking for answers. It feels like we are the hamsters on the proverbial wheel of life just running in circles. Nothing really changing. The scenery is always the same. Things not getting better, but definitely not getting worse.

Because I know without a shadow of a doubt that God is good and how much He loves us, I am confident that this is all a part of HIS plan. I would just love to receive a memo of sorts about what exactly we are supposed to be learning through this all.

For now my heart hurts for the one I love. I want to make it better. In the meantime all I can do is pray to the One who is faithful and able. As I was running errands tonight and praying out loud, I couldn't even end my prayer with an "Amen". That to me felt like I was closing up my requests and tying them with an ugly bow. I needed to leave it as open dialogue with the Lord. I'm gonna have to keep coming back to Him with this. Submitting it and giving it over again and again.

When I was about a mile from home a song came on the radio. The Lord sure gives us what we need to hear when we need to hear it. It was Remind Me Who I Am by Jason Gray. I encourage you to listen to it.

Who we are in Christ is the antithesis of what the world says we are. Our worth is based in being a child of the King. We are heirs to the throne. That is our destiny. Praise the Lord! For now I will get back to praying that the Lord helps us to believe who we are to HIM!

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To Remember:
Logan learned my cell phone number yesterday. We have been practicing cutting, writing his name (first and last) in upper and lower case and I wanted him to memorize my phone number. It didn't take long. I think he has called me 27 times in the last 24 hours. He's left me 4 voice mails and has even attempted to text me from the home phone. I've created a monster. I'm sending him the bill if I go over my minutes.

Breaking up with Avacado

When we first moved in to our house 10 plus years ago I was sold on the idea of painting our family room the perfect shade of sage. I chose Bonsai Tint from Sherwin Williams. In my exuberance I painted the ENTIRE room only to realize it looked like the fake green color you find in mint chocolate chip ice cream. I was horrified. Why it took me the whole paint job to figure it out is still a mystery.
I turned back to my trusty Sherwin Williams color palate and found Softened Green. It was just what I had in mind and lasted 2 whole years, until we were able to purchase furniture of our own choosing. Enter Avacado. It was one of the boldest color choices I had ever made. It was cozy, warm, inviting and just what I had been looking for.

So here we are 8 years later and my taste regarding almost all things decorative is changing. Since we can't afford (and all of our stuff is perfectly fantastic) new furniture, curtains, etc., the cheapest thing to do is going to be re-paint. Ah... 4 colors in 10 years. I must be crazy in the head. I'm also planning to re-hang our curtains so they are more like panels framing the windows and re-hang pictures and make things fresh and more to my our current taste and style.

So stay tuned to find out which paint color we chose and for some before and afters of the whole room. It will take a few weeks.