Awkward Silence

It's been a while since my last post!  In fact, if you were a regular follower, you probably thought that Kindergarten killed me!  Surprise... I survived.  I'm not going to lie... it was a HUGE transition for this mama that likes everyone home, but it has given us opportunities to be a blessing and to be blessed.  I needed some time away to process and journal through that season... some time away just to do life.  I'll share about that in the next few days... some pictures... and randomness, I'm sure!  Thanks for waiting on me!

14 summers...

Earlier today I was thinking about how much I'm enjoying the summer routine... or lack-there-of.  The kids have been getting along particularly well this week.  We've had fun outside.  We've painted.  Been to the park.  The library.  I really love summer break. 

As I was pondering all this, I suddenly had one of my weird mom moments.  I try not to be the weird mom, but let's be honest - sometimes, I just am.  Anyway... in my weird mom moment, I realized that I only have 14 summers left with Sadie.  14.  Seriously.  I kinda wanted to cry.  More like I really wanted to cry.  So, I quickly had a discussion with myself and decided to get a grip. 

Fast forward to tonight.  I've been clicking around checking in on the blogs I love to read and came across this. Really?!  What are the odds that The Nester would actually count up how many summers she has left with her kids and blog about it today???  So now, I want to cry again.  I would like to personally thank The Nester for thinking like me.  You may be my long lost sister.  AND, as The Nester so eloquently put it, "May this summer be slow and full of wonder."

I think I'm maturing... or getting old and sentimental.

I used to have this thing with Christmas trees. In order for a tree to be beautiful they had to have white lights, coordinating bulbs and the garland hung just right. Also... they had to be without a corny angel tree topper that flashed enough to send someone into a light induced seizure.

Things have changed. I now have a 4 year old and a 2 year old who love crafting gluey and glittered ornaments that they are oh-so-proud-of. I've inherited some ornaments from our childhood and a few from my grandparents personal collection. There are memories attached to each ornament and they seem to run deep. So, this year, our tree has all the garb on it that I used to love (and still do) and old memories strewn throughout... and it's beautifully perfect.

Here's my Baby's First Christmas Ornament from 1981. I did have a white little dog like that but lacked in the hair department until about 1983... I was one bald little critter for the longest time. Maybe someday I will show you my baby pictures... wouldn't that be fun?! Back to Christmas...

This was the Mr. and Mrs. Clause that hung on my grandparents tree for as long as I can remember. I loved taking them out of their wrapping this year. I couldn't help but think that maybe my grandpa was the last one to hold Mr. and Mrs. Clause as they were wrapped up for me.


You know that I'm loosening up when Raphael makes a Christmas appearance...

Doesn't get any better than a hero in a half shell on your tree. He's hanging low getting ready to guard my gifts from sneaky little fingers.... good thing Eric picked this one out as a little guy.... hey... maybe I'll show baby pics of him too! *insert evil laugh*

Wishing you the most wonderful Christmas season yet! May we truly embrace the deep love that God has for each of us in His precious Son, Jesus.

What's your shopping style???

I haven't ever been big on Black Friday sales. There is nothing appealing to me about getting up at the crack of dawn and fighting millions of people in order to save a couple bucks. PLUS... I have never even really seen anything in the ads that I just can't live without.

Since we've moved to our new city, there aren't many options for shopping, so I've started doing a majority of my Christmas shopping online. Cyber Monday... now that's what I'm talking about. I had a lovely morning shopping online in my PJ's snuggled in my big chair. I got several items checked off my list in less than a half hour and saved me a lot of $$$... bliss.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! What's your shopping flavor???

Can I get an "Oooooo..."???

I have been on a spring cleaning kick lately... de-cluttering, reorganizing, deep cleaning. It feels so good to accomplish some of these things that lurk around. There's one problem with spring cleaning, though... it causes me to be majorly distracted.

Sunday afternoon I began clearing the table and doing our lunch dishes. I opened up the fridge door to put our condiments away when I thought, "This thing is a mess." How did it possibly get this way??? So guess what... I quickly forgot about dishes and began unloading the thing. I got it all cleaned out, sprayed down, threw away the outdated items (I am embarrassed by how many expired condiments I had) and reloaded or fridge. But I couldn't stop there... the type A side of me said that the job wasn't complete until I cleaned out the freezer... type A can't stand not finishing a project. So I flung open the freezer door and got crackin'. AND, of course, took a picture for you... because that's what bloggers do.

Oh, and did I mention that I eventually got back to the dishes???!!!

Could it be???

My brother, Brady, and I were raised on a little bit of Oak Ridge Boys Christmas. We decorated the tree as we sung these tunes and I think it was the only Christmas cassette tape we had growing up (except Mannheim Steamroller... which I consider lame-o).

A few years back, my dad purchased Brady and I an ORB Christmas CD for us to enjoy with our families... it was a wonderful idea, but I'm not sure my husband or sister-in-law have the appropriate amount of appreciation for the ORB Christmas music. All I can say is Eric better start falling in love with the Oak Ridge Boys soon BECAUSE yesterday he came home from work reporting that he heard that Oak Ridge Boys do a Christmas special in the Wichita area every couple years. I'm sitting here doing my happy dance just thinking about possibly going to see them sing a little "Christmas Carol." Does it get any better than this???

Boom, Boom, Ain't it great to be CRAZY?

I'm fairly well known for loosing my keys. I've even stranded myself in my home because the keys were missing... very depressing. BUT... lately, I've been forgetting LOTS of things... loosing important things... AND this problem is DEVASTATING to an organized person!!!

Just last week, I lost my garage door opener for 4 days. 4 DAYS!!! It was terrible. I had to go in and OUT of the front door with the baby carrier (and Cole, of course), Sadie, diaper bags, my purse, groceries, etc. Every waking minute I spent scrounging around for that opener... I laid awake wondering where I could have put it... it was not fun. Hubby found my garage door Genie in his truck... and I was a happy woman again.

THEN, yesterday I went to pay for a purchase with my debit card and it was NOT IN MY PURSE. I thought I was going to develop an ulcer before I could get home to look for it... thankfully I found it in my pants pocket from church on Sunday.... I was in too big of a hurry to devour my Mother's Day cobbler from Hog Wild to return it back to my wallet. Nice.

I think I need more sleep... otherwise, I may soon be loosing my mind...