Luncheon, well of course!

I was having lunch with a dear friend yesterday and I told her I was going to a luncheon today and she replied, "You are going to drive all the way over there for lunch?" (I get invited to luncheons at my University from the education department and its an hour away). I replied,"Yes, anytime the word "luncheon" and an invite comes my way I say YES". LOL!  What I mean is, I've been a stay at home mom for 13 years and have watched my husband get invited to lunches, trips, parties and more. What have I been invited to? A PTO meeting. Ha! 

Going to college at 36 years old is AMAZING.  I mean, I feel so alive when I am on campus.  I feel like I am getting a second chance to experience what I missed out on so many years ago. 

Anyone that is having second thoughts or wondering if they should go to school, DO IT!  It will change your life forever.

This is Me, Then.

College Moms and Working Moms

I found the following info and wanted to share.  I think it pertains to working moms as well.

How To Balance School and Family When Mom Goes Back To College

How to Balance School Life With Family Life

For the busy mom returning to college, the most important ingredient in mixing school life with family life is balance. In order for Mom to return to college to earn a degree or prepare for career advancement, there must be a balance between family life and dedicated school time. It is important to maintain a strong healthy relationship with loved ones while taking the time to study. Whether you choose to learn online or attend a college or university, setting up a schedule will be invaluable in maintaining your sanity and achieving your goals.

 

College Students Require Time Alone

It is important for the kids and the spouse to realize that the busy student needs alone time to study and complete lessons. A clear and detailed schedule with designated study time and playtime, will help in defining when Mom is available and when she needs to be left alone. Online learning may seem to be an easier way to fit education into raising a family, but it still requires time to accomplish lessons, complete assigned reading and study for tests.

 

Schedule Time for Study and Play

A schedule posted on the refrigerator with blocked out times when you are studying and will help kids adjust to Mom not being readily available. The balance to this is of course scheduled time for play and family time. For the schedule to be successful, it should be strictly followed. When it's playtime, then play. When it's date night with the hubby, then go out and have a fun without worrying about that paper that needs to be finished or that last chapter you put off reading.

Share What You Learn in School

If you have school-aged children, your school experience can be used as an example to them. Your good study habits will be emulated by your children. Also, you can share what you are learning with your children. Share relevant topics with them at the family dinner table and encourage discussion. By making them a part of your learning experience they will feel more involved and may feel less threatened by your interest in something other than them.

Prepare to be Flexible With Your College Studies

Though the goal is to maintain and follow a set schedule, life inevitably will get in the way at times. When that happens, then flexibility becomes a factor. You should always have a built in 'whoops' in your schedule. Obviously in times of real family emergency, family wins out over school. Lessons can be made-up, but when the kids need you, it can't be put off or ignored. Have backup or standby childcare available. Try and stay caught up on coursework and study ahead if possible. Don't put things off until the last second. Be prepared. Expect the best, but prepare for the worst.

 

Set Aside Time to Study Alone

Your designated study time should be strictly adhered to by all members of the family. Make it clear that when you are studying, you are to be left alone, baring any real emergencies. You may have to lay out in detail what constitutes an emergency - "Can I have a snack", as opposed to "The toilet is plugged up and overflowing." During mid-terms of finals, this time may need to be expanded. Just make sure the kids know that it is only for a short while, and afterwards the normal schedule will resume.

 

Family meal - balancing school with family

Game night - balancing school with family

Ice Cream Sundae Night - balancing school with family

Family study time - balancing school with family Set Aside Time for the Family

Family meal time

Meals are a great time to spend with the family. It can start with preparation. Let the kids help in the kitchen and use the time together to talk about the day and any upcoming events that might effect the schedule. Even though the convenience of fast food dinners may seem very appealing, family dinners at home, offer much needed family time.

Game night

Board games, seem a bit outdated these days, but they are a wonderful way to spend time with the family. Many of the popular board games and card games can be played with younger family members but still offer a challenge to the older children and the parents. It can be a fun time for the family to bond together.

Movie night

Let the kids take turns picking out a movie for the family to watch. This can be from your own collection or make a family excursion to your local movie rental store. Share a big bowl of popcorn or similar favorite family snack. If the movie happens to go on beyond the usual bedtime, so much the better.

Ice cream sundae night

Set one night a week aside for ice cream night. Let each child in the family pick out their favorite ice cream flavor and toppings. If the children are old enough, let them build their own sundae. For this one night, don't worry about the mess or the extra sugar intake. Make it a family event.

Go to the theater

If you are attending a college or university, take advantage of the student priced tickets for school performances. Check out the program of upcoming plays or concerts and plan ahead to take the kids to appropriate shows. Not only will this give them something to look forward too, but it may allow them to see live performances that you would not ordinarily be able to afford to take them to.

Study together

If your children are in school also, you can spend time together studying. This can be a better alternative to Mom shutting herself up in her room to study alone. Also you will serve as an example and help instill good study habits.

What Tips Do You Have for Busy Moms? 

My tip: Run errands one day a week.  It's better to be crazy all in one day running the roads than a little crazy every day.

This is Me, Then.

Valentines and Diplomas!

Well, my diploma finally came in the mail today. 

The anticipation and staring at my empty frame since mid December has just about killed me.  Well, it's here, I framed it, yes I have an Associates degree, but I've had one since mid December.  Ha! This is just a piece of paper. On to my bachelors degree.

In the midst of homework all day today I've played Words with Friends, ate an early dinner with my boys and made my son's Valentine Cards for his class.  I am reading The Love Dare again and starting it tomorrow.  My husband and I are in a little "funk" and me nagging him to be nicer to me and more romantic isn't working, SO I am going to do it to him. Do unto others kind of thing!  Fingers crossed it works!  I will report back in 40 days! 

I wanted to share a picture I came across the other day.  It's Taylor and her Granny that just passed away, Easter 2005. This was also the day we announced to our entire family that we were going to have a baby!  Taylor was 6 years old.

Time is precious.

This is Me, Then.

Confirmation and What it Means

I am very excited that Taylor has completed her confirmation classes and she, Lance and I will be confirmed next Sunday at our church.  This is the next step in our walk with God and becoming Anglican.  We believe that children are Baptized as infants or at any time the parents see fit.  We also believe that children don't have to ask Jesus into their hearts, he is always there, from the beginning.  My children are also blessed with amazing God Parents that love them and will make sure they stay on a Holy Path if anything where to ever happen to us or we lead them astray.  Then as a pre-teen or teenager the child is able to confirm their faith in the Lord when they are able to truly understand God's word fully. My husband and I are being confirmed as adults and we were able to take Bible classes last summer to fully understand our confirmation.

Our church and my journey the past 9 months has been a true blessing to my family and I.  Below are some definitions I found to explain a little better.  I also like to think of our church and anyone's church for that matter like this.  We all believe in the same Christian faith, we just take different paths and steps to get there.

This is Me, Then. 

Baptism

In baptism, we thank God for his gift of life and publicly acknowledge his love. In the Anglican Church it is common to baptise young children; this is sometimes known as christening.

Baptism is a 'sacrament' (holy ritual to symbolise grace) in the Christian tradition that is traced back to Jesus himself being baptized in the river Jordan.

Confirmation

Confirmation marks the point in the Christian journey where those who have been baptised as children make a firm commitment to Christian discipleship.

Through prayer and the laying on of hands by a bishop, the Church also asks God to give those being confirmed power, through the Holy Spirit, to live the life of discipleship.



The Five Agreements

This book changed my life last fall. I thank my dear friend Kelley for telling me about it.    Now I just need to hang the agreements on my fridge and put them in my Kindle so I remember them in times of need!  HA!  Enjoy!

The Five Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

January 17, 2010 by Editor

According to don Miguel Ruiz, everything we do is based on agreements we have made — agreements with ourselves, with other people, with God, and with life. But the most important agreements are the ones we make with ourselves. With these agreements we tell ourselves who we are, how to behave, what is possible, what is impossible.

The Five Agreements:

1.BE IMPECCABLE WITH YOUR WORD

Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.

2.DON’T TAKE ANYTHING PERSONALLY

Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won’t be the victim of needless suffering.

3.DON’T MAKE ASSUMPTIONS

Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.

4.ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST

Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are tired as opposed to well rested. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.

5.BE SKEPTICAL, BUT LEARN TO LISTEN

Don’t believe yourself or anybody else. Use the power of doubt to question everything you hear: Is it really the truth? Listen to the intent behind the words, and you will understand the real message.

The Four Agreements slowly helps you to recover your authentic self, and the real you starts to awaken. With The Fifth Agreement comes the complete acceptance of yourself just the way you are, and the complete acceptance of everybody else just the way they are. The reward is your eternal happiness. The Fifth Agreement is made with words, of course, but its meaning and intent is beyond the words. The Fifth Agreement is ultimately about seeing your whole reality with the eyes of truth, without words.

Make the Five Agreements your way of life — love yourself, enjoy life, and make your personal world a dream of heaven. And, by changing your world, you are changing the world.

As don Miguel says, “By practicing the Five Agreements, what you are really doing is respecting everything in creation. You are respecting your dream; you are respecting everybody else’s dream. If you use these tools, your effort is really for everyone, because your joy, your happiness, your peace, and your heaven are contagious. When you are happy, the people around you are happy too, and it inspires them to change their own world.”

This way of life is entirely possible, and it’s in your hands. The change begins with you. Why not start now?

This is Me, Then.



Let 2012 Be Your Year...

In 2011 I let people in my life dictate my well being, my worth, my me.  Not anymore.  In my search for answers and why me me me, I realized I wasn't the one with the problem, these people hurting me where the ones with the problem.  They are the ones with a low self worth or why else would they find such joy in hurting, not forgiving and punishing me.  I turned my sadness into joy and now pray for these people daily and wish them nothing but happiness and success even though they don't feel the same about me.  I turned my sorrow into finally finishing my Associates Degree in Elementary Education from Lee College.  It was a tough semester with some sacrifices me and my family had to make but WE did it.  I then turned my sorrow into getting accepted to the University of Houston Clear Lake and I am proud to say I will begin there next week with a plan to graduate in May of 2014 with my teaching degree.  My husband and I made the decision to take out a student loan to pay for these last two years and I am proud to say my husband paid for my associates degree with no help.  I applied for and received two grants and one scholarship as well.  I have been truly blessed with the MOST AMAZING man on earth, my husband. 

I would like to end by tooting a little horn! Everyone should toot their own horn!  I was nominated for The National Society of Leadership and Success, Sigma Alpha Pi.  I can not wait to see what the future holds for me and my family. 

Mission:We Build Leaders Who Make a Better World.The Society is an organization that helps people discover and achieve their goals. The Society offers life-changing lectures from the nations leading presenters and a community where like-minded success oriented individuals come together and help one another succeed. The Society also serves as a powerful force of good in the greater community by encouraging and organizing action to better the world.

This is Me, Then.



College...Don't Knock It Unless You've Tried It.

College, if your parents put you through college, stop right now and give them a call and say thank you. 

College, if your parents couldn't afford to put you through so they took out loans, donated body parts, whatever, stop right now and call them and say thank you.

College, if your parents were unable to put you through BUT supported you as you put yourself through with words or praise and encouragement and just being there for you, stop right now and call them and say thank you.

If you did or are doing it all on your own with no support from your family, no words of praise, no words of encouragement, stop right now and thank yourself.  You are truly amazing! 

If not only you are doing it yourself but you are also married with kids at home, a single parent with kids at home, you work, you do anything other than have complete focus and attention on college then you deserve a key to the city!!!! A Parade!!!! A Party!!!! You deserve everything.

If you have a loved one in your life, a friend, a child, a parent, a neighbor, or anyone in your circle that goes to college please remember that not only are they doing something VERY SCARY and out of the box, they are doing something for their family's future.  A typical day for them involves the normal routine of a crazy parent and trying to maintain a marriage and/or homelife, but sitting in a classroom with a bunch of teenagers or twentysomethings fresh out of highschool that make you feel SUPER old and refer to you as Mrs. or Mr. instead of "hey you".  Then you come home and any free time is spent grocery shopping, bill paying, clothes washing, dishwasher loading and when you finally sit down and try to remember the last time you bathed someone needs help with their homework, folders signed, books read, and then you realize its 10:00 and everyones going to bed.  BUT WAIT, you haven't done your homework because your college professor doesnt care what your homelife is, you need to read this, type that, post a response to something by tonight at midnight. And if you WORK too, full time or part time, God Bless You! Its the MOST rewarding and MOST frustraiting thing any adult can take on.  SO, please realize if this person you love doesnt make it by to see your new lamp, or meet you for tea, or go shopping,  that they really just need a nap or a caserole for tonights dinner. Also, any free time is given to their spouse and children that never get their full attention anymore.

Hats off to returning students of the world!  You are amazing!

This is Me, Then.

White Stuff in Your Hair?

Wow, let's see.  Is it Friday yet?  I got up at 5:45, hit snooze, got up at 6:00, hit snooze, got up at 6:15, hit snooze, hubby got up at 6:30.  HOLY SMOKES, I was supposed to be up 45 minutes ago!  Ran to my daughters room, "get up, its 6:30, we slept in".  Hair straightening iron goes on, and the day begins.  My son sits up in his bed as I walk to the bathroom.  "good morning mom" he yawns.  I say "lay back down" he replies "I slept a long time, I want to get up". 

Let's go back to this weekend and why we were all so sleepy!  My hubby and son went to the deer lease for a boys weekend with my hubby's dad, brother, nephew and friend.  Had a blast!  I stayed home w my daughter, had a blast!  Went to church, home to meet the boys and then go bowling w our church and then home to scream at the tv because my husband beat me in week 1 of our fantasy football!  URGH!  Stayed up until 11:00 hoping for a fantasy football miracle in the form of Santonio Holmes or Dustin Keller, and NOPE!  No miracle!

Back to my son this morning!  He's up, daughter is up, sausage and biscuits are going, thanks to my amazing husband and I go lay back down until 6:50.  Yes, I was that tired! 

Hubby says breakfast is ready, we eat and my daughter and I are out the door at 7:05.  Get her dropped off and I am back home at 7:30ish but I sit in the car for five minutes listening to the rest of Roula and Ryan's Roses Update on the radio, don't ask, but it involved a hubby cheating on his wife NOT w a female!  Tortured story I had to finish!

Back in the house, my AMAZING husband has our son dressed, I look for socks, fill out his fundraiser form, stick it in his back pack and he and I are off!  THANK THE LORD he was eating at school today, chicken nuggets and green beans to the rescue!  No lunch was needed!

Get him dropped off by 8:00.  Home to an important conversation with my best friend as I started a load of clothes and then finished our talk while I enjoyed a slightly cool humid hot breeze outside.   I then walk in the house and my husband tells me to follow him 45 minutes away to take my car to a shop we use now since my car is out of warranty and it specializes in my car and is half the price.  Ok, so I am off again!

Half way home after all these plans of lunch and grocery shopping together (yes, my exciting life with my husband while the kids are away involves grocery shopping), I realize I am supposed to be at my sons school at 11:00 to take Grandparents Day Pictures as a volunteer.  We race home, I throw my dirty hair into a pony tail, change from my "mommy pants" to some fancy "mommy pants".  Then I get to his school at 11, stay until 1 taking pics and pulling him out of class while his teacher and I re-measure him for a tux he has to wear in two weeks for his Aunts wedding!  (measurements got mixed up). Then I race home, load the dishwasher up and decide to leave a little early to pick my daughter up from school for her Orthodontist appt because my husband had to go look at a job and I was afraid I wouldnt be back in time for my son to get off the bus!  So I had my neighbor and friend on stand by and even the bus driver, texting her and telling her just to take him home if noone was outside!  She's a friend of the family thank the Lord! 

Orthodontist appt. went well, got elastics, don't ask, and then home by 4:00 (got son off the bus) for me to realize I have a math quiz due by midnight and homework due by 8:00 AM tomorrow.   So, bootcamp is out, I am staying home, washing clothes and doing math until I pop!  Daddy is handling dinner, boiled shrimp and football! 

Oh and if you got this far I will save a little tidbit for you:  As I sat in the orthodontist office with my slick backed dirty pony tail, my daughter says "you need some head and shoulders, you have white stuff all on the side of you hair".  I just sighed and kept playing Words W Friends on my phone.

This is Me, Always. 

Really Don't Know What to Blog About Anymore!

Well, I am at a loss for words.  Yes, me! Crazy huh?

I was hurt very badly this past Spring and putting my life out for all to see has been hard for me.  Do I stop blogging all together? Do I just blog what we cook? Do I just blog crafts or decorations?  Do I just let myself blog whatever is going on that day?  These past six months I have had some major ups and downs and my eyes have been opened to numerous things.  First off, facebook is a tool used to hurt people.  Not everyone does it, not even mean people do it.  People in general use Facebook to post about their magical life and all thats in it and what someone else wasn't invited to.  People will post about this and that while their friends read it and wonder why in the world they werent invited and then remind themselves that they are adults and this crud shouldnt matter.  Then people don't use the private message button to ask someone a question or thank them for something they did because they want the entire world to see!  They WANT their friends list to see that not only where they not invited but they had a blast too!  LOL! 

How did I figure this out?  I was doing it!  Not only was I doing it, I was reading others posts that hurt my feelings because I didn't understand why they didnt invite me! 

So, as hard as it is for me, I have tried to make my status updates about me only and not who I just had dinner with and you didn't!  Its a learning curve and I also don't want to give away so much of me that people think they know me just because of my status updates. 

Really people need to think!  You are posting these things publically because deep down you want people to know you did something fun without them!  It hurts!  Ha!

So, I am trying to stop doing that myself!  I may slip a time or two, but I am trying!

With that said, I want to get back into blogging.  I don't know when or how but I want to.

We'll see what happens!

This is Me, Then.

When Life Throws You Lemons, Make a Lemonade Stand!

I have been out of the blogging loop lately and then I try to jump back in and I fall right back out.  Ha!  Well, my life has had some wild, sad and amazing turns these past few months and I feel even more blessed than before.  To make a long story short we have changed denominations, joined a church, got the kids Baptized, joined the Chamber of Commerce, started selling Advocare (https://www.advocare.com/11068824/) and I have taken control of my life.  Getting involved in my community, my church and people that care about me for me has been a huge eye opener. 

I am back to being happy in my life and having fun. I am back to standing tall and not letting negative people or things in my life.  I am back to being me, all the sparkles and all. 

I can't make you love me, forgive me, hate me or like me. Only you can do that!

With that garbage out of the way I am going to finish posting pics of my house this week and I am starting the 24 Day Challenge w Advocare next week and I am SUPER excited to report I have lost 5 lbs in two weeks just by adding Spark to my life.  Its a mix in for your water and I LOVE it!  I am off all sodas and Vitamin Waters. 

Did I also tell you I attended a NKOTBSB concert?  If you don't know what that is, dont ask!  LOL!

This is Me, Again.

Baptism Gifts...Shh, It's a Secret.

I am so excited about getting my kids Baptized.  The date will be set soon and we all sat down as a family and chose God Parents.  I thought it was going to be hard to decide but our daughter knew exactly who to pick and we all agreed.  SO, I have ordered these necklaces above for the God Mothers.  One will have my son's birthstone, and his God Mother's birthstone, and the other will have my daughter's and her God Mother's.  Then I am having a cross stamped on both circles and the word God Mother.  THEN, I ordered one for me with mine and the kids stones and their names on my circle. 

I sure hope these two ladies say yes!  HA!  I am asking them very soon and presenting them with the gifts to wear to the Baptism.

God Bless everyone during this Holy Week and always.

THIS IS ME, THEN.

My time away from facebook

I gave up Facebook for Lent. 

 It was a CRAZY decision,

 but God sure knew what he was doing. 

I have been searching for a church for years now, but really made the decision in the last 6 months to really do it and be done.  I found myself in a brand new journey during the season of Lent and my family and I are even changing denonimations with this new path.  You can check it out here 

My Church 

and I hope to bring you blogs about our joining, getting the kids Baptized and  becoming Anglican.  

Then,  I gave up Facebook for Lent and would have never known I would have a major stumbling block occur that involved Facebook.   I thank God that I had the strength to not break Lent and reply and put hateful things out on the world wide web. 

With that said, its all in the past and I thank God for opening my eyes over this season of Lent and showing me how to stand up for what I believe in.  I can't wait to begin this new adventure and building my faith from the ground up.  It's all so new and exciting to me!

THIS IS ME, THEN.

*update, my camera has a cold and should be up and running next week to bring you awesome pics of my entire house!  I am going to walk you through each and every room!

 

My Day!

Let's see. My day M-F goes something like this, unless I get called into work and then the house goes into complete disaster mode!  LOL.

THIS WAS MY WEDNESDAY

6:00 am (really, no way, I reset it for 6:40)
6:40 am hit snooze once
6:45 am hit it again
6:50 am seriously, I gotta get up

My Morning Routine Moves Very Quickly. No time for error.

I brush my teeth, throw my hair in a bun, place my sunglasses on top of my head, turn all bedroom lights on and fans off, start a load of clothes, throw some biscuits in the oven, place 5 frozen sausage patties in the pan on low heat, kiss my hubby goodbye, he has an early meeting, and then go back into my daughters room and say "seriously, GET UP" and she always responds, "what time is it" and I scream "7:10, GET UP NOW".
7:10 Sissy is up and she also moves very quickly because we lay our clothes out the night before and bathe.
I made my bed and started working on my bedroom a bit (deep cleaning it this week)
7:25ish Sissy finishes breakfast and makes scrambled eggs and plates our yummy meal! 
7:30 I try to wake my son up. He is not having it this morning and I HAVE to get him up because his daddy is at work and he has to ride to take his sissy to school.  Oh well, I give up and decide to eat my breakfast warm!
7:35ish I eat and watch 2-3 music videos with my daughter. I notice my Mom's husband drive up a little earlier than he did yesterday, he is doing some work on the outside of our house, and I get an idea!  Cash can stay in bed!  He will be here in case he wakes up!  WOOHOO!
7:50 we jump in my truck! 
7:55 we pull up to the grocery store to pick up some bottled waters for lunches.
8:00ish Can't Beat Maria comes on the radio and i try to call and never make it through.
8:10ish I drop my daughter off and head home!
8:25 I pull in and when i walk through the door my son wakes up.  He never knew I was gone!  YES!  Good Mom!
I give his plate a quick 30 seconds in the microwave, make him a milk (he has to take a stool softener daily and milk is the only way I can hide the nasty powder)
8:30 I start another load of laundry and start cleaning my room (which has a sunroom attached which acts as our second living room)
8:40ish I get on the phone with my dear friend and we yap until almost 9:15. I gotta go, i tell her, I gotta clean! 
9:15-11:00 I cleaned my bedroom while my son went in and out playing and watching tv (i let him stay home from preschool)
11:00 I made us some yummy canned raviolis!
11:30 I was back in the midst of my bedroom deep clean makeover!  I was moving stuff, hanging stuff, taking stuff down, just lots of stuff!
1:30 rolls around and another load of laundry later i started dinner. spaghetti with deerburger. Family fav!
2:00 I take a break on the porch to look at my new Pottery Barn Catalog.
2:30 Back in my bedroom and i must say its looking fantastic by this time but I am feeling funny. Must be the canned meal I devoured for lunch.
3:00 Oh, thats why i feel bad.  My monthly visitor showed up, Mr. Period.  I know he's a man because no woman would do this to me each and every month!
3:15ish. Still cleaning my room and sunroom. By this time I am mopping and dusting.
4:00ish My daughter gets off the bus, my hubby is home and its a bit of chaos.
4:30 my husband has to leave again for a quick trip, I feel like laying on a heating pad and everyone is screaming they are hungry.  We eat at 5:00 around these parts!
4:35 my hubby calls and tells me he hit one of my new pots with his trailer when he pulled out.  He will fix it when he gets home, I should not panic.  I shockingly say ok, and dont' panic.
5:00ish we are eating, cant wait for daddy and the garlic bread.  5:30 Daddy is home, and he brought ice cream for dessert (love my hubby). So we all venture outside till dark playing volleyball and t-ball and just enjoying the spring time weather.
7:30ish I am back in, I take a shower and tell everyone mommy is off the clock. Dishes can wait, it can all wait.  I curl up in bed w my laptop around 8:15 and just VEG OUT!
9:30 the kids come and ask if they can lay with me.  I of course say yes, only until Daddy comes to bed.  I turn my noise machine on to Oceans and set it for 30 minutes.  I don't know when, where or how, but I woke up this morning and they were gone to their bedrooms and I slept like a log! 

I live a charmed life, I know!  ;o)

This is Me, Then. 

"Cash, Want to Ride With Me?" was all it took.

Field Trip Fun.

This is Me, Then.

In the eyes of a boy

"hush, now, I see the light in the sky...

Oh, it's almost blinding me...

I can't believe I've been touched by an angel of love..."

"All in the eyes of a boy"

I signed my baby boy up for Kindergarten today. 

I thought i had it under control, I don't.

I thought I was handling it well, I'm not.

If your volume is down, turn it up and listen to the words of this song by Celine Dion.  My son was a gift sent from heaven and this song kills me everytime.

This is me, then.



The Real Me

The real me is a city girl that loves the country.  I truly LOVE all things homemade, old, seasoned, stories. I love it!  I want to go to church and worship God and sit back with a cold one by a fire if I want to. I want to be the REAL me, not a certain me on Sunday mornings, but on a Friday night I am someone else.  I don't need constant social gatherings or sitting around talking about how much I just spent on a new pair of jeans or a purse.  I need the 3 people in this house to love me and I need my husband for the rest of my life.  I need to go to our deer lease even though I would really like to be at a Macy's one day sale.  I need to be home baking cookies and watering my plants.  I don't NEED all these crazy things I see people needing around me.  I truly LOVE spending my Friday and Saturday nights with my husband and kids.  I am truly blessed and I thank God every day for those blessings and for taking the glasses off of my eyes and letting me see who my real friends are around me, that want the same things I do.  And friends that forgive me when I stumble, not judge me.  I am so thankful!

We ended our Spring Break with our son at our deer lease. (Our daughter stayed back with a family friend all weekend). We bathed under the stars, watched the Super Moon, road four wheelers, ate at the County Seat Cafe and just had an amazing East Texas Weekend.

This is Me, Then.

Teaching My Kids To Fish

 I found these AWESOME chore charts on etsy.com and found out they have an actual website to go with this system of teaching your child responsibility along with their weekly chores.  We aren't a "chore" kind of family.  We mainly just scream once we are fed up with stepping over shoes or backpacks. 

The two above pictures are my systems that I ordered.  I have not hung them up yet.  We are starting fresh on Monday.  Take a look at the pics below and at the website for the exact system and video details.  I will post more details next week when we get started. OH, and say a little prayer for my mom.  She is having back surgery on Monday.  God Bless!



Fishers Kids

This is Me, Then.

Saturday in South East Texas

I am LOVING the weather lately, my allergies not so much!  LOL!  I am happy to report I received my first paycheck this week.  WOOHOO!  It feels good to bring in a little money.  Our commercial and residential landscaping business is busier than ever and we feel so blessed.  This Spring Break is full of no plans.  Just resting, planting flowers, grilling and taking it day by day.

I hope to bring you lots of blogs...

This is Me, Then.

Lent, Me and Crabs...

Well, it's been almost 48 hours since my last post on facebook and I must say it was easier yesterday when I was up with the most HORRIBLE sinus infection, took some drugs, got my daughter to school, then got my son dressed for western day and dropped off at school,  went to get a copy of my marriage license at the county clerks office, shopped at Marshalls, back to pick up my license where the very nice clerk and I discussed places to buy blouses for under $20, then to the social security office to finally change from my maiden name to my married name so I can actually get paid by my new job as a substitute teacher (by the way I have only worked 1 day this week, but I am not upset and these two offices I speak of were in two different towns) then to a lunch with friends and then to the admin office to give them a copy of the receipt from the social security office so I can actually get paid! I think I already said that.  This was all before 1:00. Wait, let's back up.  Monday my precious baby boy had Kindergarten orientation and I was fine, no tears, no nothing until the very nice "has an accent" counselor mentioned the words "empty nest" and "how many of you will be having your last, first day of Kindergarten with your children" cut to tears, sigh, "mommy why are you crying" you get the picture.  Oh, wait, before the orientation I got called to work half a day so I went by my mom's job and told her she had to pick up her grand boy from school.  She of course said sure, then I went to orientation, worked half a day, then home to my mom and son outside doing my laundry.  yes, my mommy does my laundry when she comes over.  Insert SMILE.  Then sent my hubby and son to the t-ball practice from hell.  Who cares!  My daughter and I snuck away for Dairy Queen.  Don't tell the boys!  Then Tuesday rolled around and I don't really remember what we did except I made a HUGE meal for Fat Tuesday and my son hated it, my husband worked late and my daughter and I devoured it!  That was AFTER she and I went to her Junior High Orientation (insert, my mom kept my son again, she adores my little monster and insert we arent talking about her orientation or I will cry again).  So we are back to my crazy day yesterday that kept me from thinking about facebook and today I have stayed in my PJ's only long enough to change into sweat pants to drop off my work clothes at the cleaners and pick up a prescription.  My allergies are so bad I have resorted to taking 2x my son's prescription Singular.  I gotta get my own prescription. and insert I miss facebook! 

This is Me, Then.

Oh, the crabs!  Look at these dip recipes PW posted!  They look AMAZING! Crab Dips

This and That

I am giving up Facebook for Lent.  Yes, I am a Christian, no we don't belong to a church and no, we don't even know what denomination we are.  We were both raised Baptist/Assembly of God and we both don't want to be that anymore.  Nothing wrong with being Baptist or Assembly of God, it's just not us.  My husband is a HUGE history geek, me, not so much. BUT, I am becoming one and actually not caring so much who Brad Pitt is or isn't married to, and more about how the Anglican Church was formed and broke off from the Catholic Church and out sprung all these other church's through the years.  It fascinates me!  Which denomination is for me? That's the million dollar question!  We are on a bit of our own Eat, Pray, Love journey except I don't have to leave the country to do it!  (by the way, my father was born near Bali, her Love part, so I kind of feel like I've been there).  As I embark on these 40 days of giving up something that has a hold on me I want to share all kinds of wacky things with you like why I suddenly recite the Lord's Prayer each night and feel the need to make the sign of the cross after I am done.  Also, how I am put off by people posting things on Facebook all the time about "If you believe in Jesus Christ hit Like" and how some people freak when I slip a curse word here or there (its an illness, I cuss like a sailor, I am working on it) and look at me like they are so perfect when none of us are.  These are issues, yes, I have issues!  Ha!  But, this week I am going to start diving into all kinds of neat things about me, life, history, new pics of my house and a contest! 

If I have to give up something for 40 days, you guys are gonna get LOTS of blogging for 40 days! 

This is Me, Then.