What Was I Thinking?

20 Questions...Thanks Amy

2010-07-14T01:08:00.004-05:00

Saw this on Amy B's blog and thought it might be fun. I'm not a very interesting person, it turns out! It was fun, anyway! Enjoy and do it yourself!

1. How often do you go over the speed limit? Everyday

2. Do you dance like crazy when no one is looking? Absolutely not.

3. If you were going to be stuck on a desert island, which book, which movie, and which CD would you take with you? I would probably take a Karen Kingsbury book, The Proposal, and maybe one of the Glee soundtracks...because they have lots of variety on them.

4. What did you get in trouble for when you were a kid? My mouth

5. What really gives you the creeps? crickets. I HATE those hopping little suckers!

6. What was your favorite toy when you were a kid? I had one of those Barbie heads...the one that you fixed their hair. Loved it! wanted to be a hair stylist when I grew up (I still secretly do)

7. You run into a friend while shopping. Where are you? Probably Target

8. When you fall asleep, are you usually on your side, your stomach, or your back? Side

9. If fat or calorie intake wasn't an issue, what one food would you eat the most? french fries

10. If you could hire one of the following, which one would it be? Driver, chef, maid, or stylist? Maid!

11. What movie have you watched the most? That's a tough one...I guess I'd have to say Steel Magnolias

12. What kind of perfume do you wear? Viva La Juicy

13. What was your favorite sitcom growing up? The Cosby Show. Still LOVE it!

14. What were you doing the last time you had a really good laugh? working. There are some pretty funny chicks in my office!

15. What was the very first concert you ever attended? I'm not 100% sure on this one...but I think it was Travis Tritt! Ha! "Here's a quarter, call someone who cares!"

16. Who is the fourth person on your missed call list? Would you believe that I haven't missed that many calls?

17. How long does it take you to get ready in the mornings? 30-40 minutes

18. When is the last time you went to the mall and what did you buy? Saturday. Earrings.

19. Ever go to camp? Yes. Church camp for several years. LOVED it.

20. Do you collect anything? Nope

Amazed?

2010-06-13T18:25:00.006-05:00

I don't even know if anyone even READS this blog anymore! I never update it...but, I took a few pics at the beach that I thought I'd share. Most of them are from the photo shoot with me and 3 of my favorite kiddos! (and check out the coordinating clothes...believe it or not, we didn't even call each other and say "be sure to pack coordinating picture taking clothes!") Happy summer!

Traditional pose for the 3 crazy cousins! Right now, they're ages are 4, 6, and 8! (until July 9, when Macy throws off the "multiples of 2" ages)

Sam and Mer Mer

Macy and Mommy

Mommy, Macy, and Brady

Mommy and Brady

Mommy/Mer Mer and Macy, Sam, and Brady

Sam and Brady

Brady and Macy

Brady

Snow Day

2010-02-08T10:57:00.005-06:00

Well, it's been forever since I've posted....I just thought I'd share a couple of pics of our day. Gotta love it when the weather men are totally caught off guard! They've made a fuss in the past and we've missed school basically due to rain...there was NO talk of snow this time...and BAM! Biggest flakes I've ever seen here in Florence! The kids had a ball...

Fantastic Song!

2009-11-02T09:06:00.004-06:00

I have had this song on cd for a couple of months now, and I've always liked it...but it has really spoken to me lately and I wanted to share it with y'all. The lyrics are amazing...especially the verse that I've put in bold italics!

Inside Out
In the heart of me
There's a mystery
In my weakness there is still
A goodness not my own
That come from God alone
But it cannot be known until

You turn me inside out
So that I can be
A reflection of the One who made me
So the world can see
That it's Christ in me Lord,
Turn me inside out
Turn me inside out

What my pride conceals
Lord, Your truth reveals
And Your grace is seen somehow
There is mercy when,
In spite of who I've been,
Your glory dwells within me now

So turn me inside out
So that I can be
A reflection of the One who made me
So the world can see
That it's Christ in me Lord,
Turn me inside out
Turn me inside out

Whatever else you see
The only good in me
Is Jesus, Jesus
Whatever else you see
The only good in me
Is Jesus, Jesus

So turn me inside out
So that I can be
A reflection of the One who made me
So the world can see
That it's Christ in me Lord,
Turn me inside out
Turn me inside out

Maintaining Perspective

2009-10-26T08:31:00.002-05:00

It is important to look at things from God's point of view. I Cor. 4:6 (The Message)

If a temporary loss of perspective has left you worried, exhausted, or both, it's time to readjust your thought patterns. Negative thoughts are habit-forming; thankfully, so are positive ones. With practice, you can form the habit of focusing on God's priorities and your possibilities. When you do, you'll soon discover that you will spend less time fretting about your challenges and more time praising God for His gifts.

When you call upon the Lord and prayerfully seek His will, He will give you wisdom and perspective. When you make God's priorities your priorities, He will direct your steps and calm your fears. So today and every day hereafter, pray for a sense of balance and perspective. And remember; no problems are too big for God--and that includes yours.

The Bible is a remarkable commentary on perspective. Through its divine message, we are brought face to face with issues and tests in daily living and how, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we are enabled to respond positively to them. -Luci Swindoll

Seeking His Will

2009-10-15T12:08:00.002-05:00

Teach me to do Your will, for You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness. Ps. 143:10

God has a plan for our world and our lives. God does not do things by accident; He is willful and intentional. Unfortunately for us, we cannot always understand the will of God. Why? Because we are mortal beings with limited understanding. Although we cannot fully comprehend the will of God, we should always trust the will of God.

As this day unfolds, seek God's will and obey His Word. When you entrust your life to Him without reservation, He will give you the courage to meet any challenge, the strength to endure any trial, and the wisdom to live in His righteousness and in His peace.

The only safe place is the center of God's will. It is not only the safest place. It is also the most rewarding and the most satisfying place to be. -Gigi Graham Tchividjian

Heavenly Father, I will study Your Word and seek Your guidance. Give me the wisdom to know Your will for my life and the courage to follow wherever You may lead me, today and forever. Amen.

Indescribable

2009-10-13T08:18:00.002-05:00

From the highest of heights
To the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall
To the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees
As we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untamable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God

Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
Incomparable, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God

What Doesn't Change

2009-09-28T10:37:00.003-05:00

Dear Lord, our world changes, but You are unchanging. When I face challenges that leave me discouraged or fearful, I will turn to You for strength and assurance. Let my trust in You--like Your love for me--be unchanging and everlasting. Amen.

Optimism now!

2009-09-24T09:11:00.002-05:00

Wow! Everyday, this devotional book of mine tells me something that I REALLY needed to hear on that specific day! It's amazing how God does that! Here's the one I read this morning...hope it is something that helps you, too!

And now, dear brothers and sisters, let me say one more thing as I close this letter. Fix your thoughts on what is true and honorable and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
Phil. 4:8 (NLT)

As Christian women, we have every reason to rejoice. God is in His heaven; Christ has risen, and we are the sheep of His flock. But, when the demands of life seem great and our resources seem small by comparison, we may find ourselves exhausted, discouraged, or both.

What's your attitude today? Are you fearful, angry, or worried? Are you confused, bitter, or pessimistic? If so, God wants to have a little chat with you.

God wants you to experience His joy and abundance. But, God will not force His joy upon you; you must claim it for yourself. So today, and every day thereafter, celebrate this life that God has given you. Think optimistically about yourself and your future. Give thanks to the One who has given you everything, and trust in your heart that He wants to give you so much more.

Develping a positive attitude means working continually to find what is uplifting and encouraging.

The Importance of Prayer

2009-09-22T08:41:00.003-05:00

Are y'all ready for another post from my devotional book? I've just really been enjoying these daily devo's, and I thought some of you might enjoy them as well. This one really stepped on my toes. I'll be honest, I realize that my prayer life hasn't been what it should be, and this devo was like a kick in the pants for me and exactly what I needed to hear.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6

Prayer is a powerful tool for communication with our Creator; it is an opportunity to commune with the Giver of all things good. Prayer is not a thing to be taken lightly or to be used infrequently. Prayer should never be reserved for mealtimes or for bedtimes; it should be an ever-present focus in our daily lives.

Daily prayer and meditation is a matter of will and habit. You must willingly organize your time by carving out quiet moments with God, and you must form the habit of daily worship. When you do, you'll discover that no time is more precious than the silent moments you spend with your Heavenly Father.

Dear Lord, I will open my heart to You. I will take my concerns, my fears, and my hopes to You in prayer. And, then, I will trust the answers that You give. You are my loving Father, and I will accept Your will for my life today and every day that I live. Amen.

Celebrating Others

2009-09-21T11:15:00.002-05:00

I have a devotional book for women that I've been reading daily. Some of you might have seen some of the prayers from that book posted as my status on facebook from time to time. I really liked this prayer today, and thought I would share it with whomever still looks at my very rarely updated blog! It was something that I really needed to hear today.

Dear Lord, let me celebrate the accomplishments of others. Make me a source of genuine, lasting encouragement to my family and friends. And let my words and deeds be worthy of Your Son, the One who gives me strength and salvation, this day and for all eternity. Amen.

The Motions

2009-09-11T09:27:00.003-05:00

I know y'all love how I don't post for 8 months, then when I do, it's more song lyrics. Sorry...these just spoke to me. I heard this song by Matthew West on the way to work this morning, and it struck me as something I really needed to hear.

The Motions

This might hurt
It’s not safe
But I know that I’ve gotta make a change
I don’t care if I break
At least I’ll be feeling something
‘Cause 'just ok' is not enough
Help me fight through the nothingness of life

I don’t wanna go through the motions
I don’t wanna go one more day
Without Your all consuming passion inside of me
I don’t wanna spend my whole life asking
What if I had given everything?
Instead of going through the motions

No regrets
Not this time
I’m gonna let my heart defeat my mind
Let Your love make me whole
I think I’m finally feeling something

Take me all the way

Couldn't Have Said It Better Myself

2009-01-27T14:35:00.005-06:00

I was listening to a cd that I haven't listened to in a long time as I drove around on my lunch break yesterday. It really got to me and I thought I'd just share the chorus and bridge with you....

So, thank You, Jesus

Even when You see us just as we are

Fragile and frail and so far from who we want to be

So, thank You, Jesus

Even when the pieces are broken and small

Dreams shatter and scatter like the wind

Thank You, even then

So I put aside the masquerade

And admit that I am not okay

Which may not be the thing to say

But I'm not ashamed to need You more each day

-Nicole Nordeman

Random

2009-01-05T19:30:00.002-06:00

Well, I realize that every time I post something new, no one can believe it. I just don't take the time to blog much, and truthfully, I don't feel I have a lot to say!! But once in a while, I'll think of something random that I want to share. This time, it's a poem that my dad wrote for me 7 1/2 years ago when my daughter was born. I was with friends on New Years Eve, and one of them shared a poem that was written about her son by her mother, his grandmother. It made me remember this poem that my dad wrote for me and my daughter, and to this day, it brings tears to my eyes. It is so special to me, as I know it will be someday to my daughter. I just thought I would share it with you all too! I guess I should tell you that my daughter and I were both born in July, and I was 4 days shy of turning 25 on the day she was born...

There were bright, white-hot days and dark, muggy nights

In July, twenty-five summers ago.

And there was change upon change in every aspect of life--

We were bringing our new baby home.

We would cuddle her close and stare at her face

And wonder what would become

Of this beautiful creature, this dear little Angel

God had given us for our very own.

Sometimes in the night when our Angel would cry

Mommy and Daddy both got to our feet

And decided who'd feed her and rock her this time

And who'd get to go back to sleep.

When Mommy was worn out and needed to rest

Daddy would then do his part.

He would cuddle and rock and hold on his chest

The Angel who had stolen his heart.

He's sing "Hush-a-bye" and he'd sing "Daddy's Baby"

He'd sing them over and over again.

He sang to his Angel and told her he hoped

That someday she would sing songs with him.

Mommies and daughters have a special bond

That only mommies and daughters can know.
Daughters and daddies have something different--

Something that may not always show.

Those first nights at home with our little girl

Came back clearly and painfully, as well
When I saw my Angel in a white gown and veil

And heard the ringing of her wedding bells.

Our little Angel is grown and now out on her own

With her husband, a special young man.

And there is change upon change taking place in their home

Twenty-fve summers have past and it's July again.

There are bright, white-hot days and dark, muggy nights

This July, just like others we've known.

And God has visited my daughter and has given to her

An Angel of her very own.

I never thought I'd see an Angel on earth

Much less raise on in my own home.

But now I have seen--through another miracle of birth--

my Angel bring her Angel home.

-Papa

My Thoughts...

2008-11-05T10:26:00.003-06:00

One of Jarrod's cousins sent me this e-mail today, and I thought it was great! I'm SO sick of politics and everyone's opinion on them. I've tried not to blog about any of it, or post anything about it on my facebook, etc...So, when I got this email today, I thought it really summed up how I'm feeling. Have a great rest of the week!

This keeps things in true perspective.

Dear Friends, For months now my email Inbox has been besieged by nearly hysterical warnings about what will happen if Barack Obama becomes President. I have been encouraged to be worried, afraid, concerned, prepared for disaster, and a whole host of other maladies if this happens. I do not deny the importance of this election, but it seems to me that we need a dose of perspective. This is a "True/False" test. I'd like for all of us to take it.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, Jesus will still be King.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, our responsibilities as Christians will not have changed one iota.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, the greatest agent for social change in America will still be winning the hearts and minds of men and women through the gospel, not legislation.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, my primary citizenship will still be in this order – (1) the Kingdom of God, (2)America, not vice-versa.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, the tomb will still be empty.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, the cross, not the government, will still be our salvation.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, our children will still be more concerned with whether or not we spend time with them than with who is President.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, my neighbor will still be my neighbor, and loving him/her will still be the second greatest commandment. (Do you know the first?)

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, the only way to see abortion ultimately overturned will still be winning men and women to a high view of life through the gospel of Christ.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, the only way to see gay marriage ultimately defeated will still be winning men and women to a biblical view of marriage through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, my retirement will still not match my treasure in Heaven.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, "Jesus Is Lord" will still be the greatest truth in the Universe.

True/False: The day after the election, regardless of who wins, we will still know that God is in control.

How did you score?

It's Me!

2008-08-15T12:44:00.002-05:00

I know I haven't updated in ages, and I still really don't have time. Lots of stuff going on in our lives. I have "first day of school" pictures, but I haven't taken the time to load them on my computer yet. The kids are loving school. Macy is in 2nd grade, and Brady started K4. He's really happy. He was ready! I wasn't, but he was. I've since gone back to work full time. What an adjustment! I haven't worked full time in over 7 years! We're all getting used to the routine.

I just ran across something that I wanted to share....especially with all you mothers! I knew you'd appreciate it. I'll try to post some pictures soon! Have a great weekend! Enjoy this funny!

Dear kids,

The bathroom door is closed. Please do not stand here and talk, whine, or ask questions. Wait until I get out.

Yes, it is locked. I want it that way. It is not broken, I am not trapped. I know I have left it unlocked and even open at times since you were born because I was afraid some horrible tragedy might occur while I was in here, but it's been 10 years and I want some PRIVACY!

Do not ask me how long I will be. I will come out when I am done.

Do not bring the phone to the bathroom door.

Do not go running back to the phone yelling, "She's in the BATHROOM!"

Do not begin to fight as soon as I go in.

Do not stick your little fingers under the door and wiggle them. This was funny when you were two, but not now.

Do not slide pennies, Legos, or notes under the door. Even when you were two, this got a little tiresome.

If you have followed me down the hall talking and are still talking as you face this closed door, please turn around, walk away, and wait for me in another room. I will be glad to listen to you when I am done.

And yes, I still love you.

Mom

Big Weekend

2008-07-06T20:54:00.006-05:00

I hope you all had a happy 4th of July! Despite the not so great weather, we had fun with family. I guess the biggest news from our weekend something that happened to my husband. He and some of his fellow firefighters were working at the park on the 4th, and a lady that worked for one of the local Hospice's came around asking everyone to register for a prize. He took the form and stuck it in his pocket. He wasn't really planning on filling it out. Honestly, we never win anything, so why bother. So, later, she came around to collect the forms. She asked him if he filled his out, and he told her that he didn't. She said, "Oh come on...you need to fill it out...you might win!" Well, guess what? HE DID WIN! Oh, and did I mention the prize???? Well, it was a

Oh yes! We're SO excited!! I was not one of the ones that got up at the crack of dawn and searched every store around Christmas time. We knew we would enjoy one, but I am just NOT the person that will wear myself out trying to acquire something that requires so much effort and money. Then, WE WON ONE!!!!!!!!!! So, that was an exciting ending to our Fourth of July...

Now, we've been partying this afternoon. Macy's 7th birthday party was today. She had a great time swimming with friends. Her cake was a flip flop cake this year, so here is the picture:
I must admit, this was a pretty yummy cake. The flip flops were frosted with homemade butter cream icing, and the bottom part was homemade caramel icing. Yum! I asked her if she wanted it to say "Happy 7th Birthday Macy Brooke" or just "Macy" and she said, "Macy Bug." That's what we called her the first several years of her life. So, that is why it says, "Macy Bug."

We'll be going to the beach next week, and I intend to take lots more pics then I did in May. Have a great week!!

It's Time!

2008-06-13T09:56:00.002-05:00

Well, wouldn't you all say it's about time for a new post? Sorry...I'm really bad at this.

We went to the beach a few weeks ago...you'd think I would've posted pictures from that trip, but wonderful parent that I am, I really didn't take that many. There are a couple of cute ones that I took of the kids...from behind! They're looking out at the ocean. I didn't know that anyone really cared much about looking at my kids back sides! We had a good time with my family. We're going back July 12 with Jarrod's side of the family, and I'm planning on doing a lot better with the camera!

Things have been hectic around here, as usual. Between working, carting kids to and from VBS, fever viruses, and WALKING...let me just fill some of you in on the walking, in case you haven't heard. Me and 5 of my girlfriends from church are doing the 3 day, 60 mile breast cancer walk in Atlanta on Oct. 24-26. We'll be walking 20 miles a day for 3 days. We started training in May. It's going well...and I'm enjoying growing my friendships with these girls as we walk miles and miles and miles in preparation for our big weekend. This morning, we walked 6...that's the longest one so far. It feels good to be done with it for the day, and it's such a sense of accomplishment! Also, let me thank all of you have donated to the cause!!! Our fundraising has been very successful! (and if you'd still like to donate, let me know and I'll tell you how!!) I just think it's going to be a life-changing experience, and I'm looking forward to it. Keep us in your prayers!

Also, may I just say HAPPY 10th ANNIVERSARY TO MYSELF! Today, yes, I realize it's Friday the 13th, is our 10th wedding anniversary. That sounds like such a long time! It's been a great 10 years, and I look forward to many more. I'm singing in a wedding this weekend, so we've got the rehearsal tonight and wedding tomorrow, but we're still managing a mini-retreat. Jarrod made all the arrangements for us to spend the night in Florence's nice, new Marriott Hotel/Spa tonight. Check out isn't until NOON, so I intend to stay there until precisely NOON and enjoy all the child-free time!

That's it...really exciting post...but something new, anyway! I always say that I'll try to do better...maybe this time, I really will! I'll certainly have some birthday and beach pictures to post next month if I don't get to anything sooner! Macy's birthday is July 9, we leave on July 12 for the beach, and my birthday is July 14...How lucky am I to get to celebrate my birthday at the beach! Yippie!! I'm sure y'all will be waiting with eager anticipation for pictures of Macy's birthday cake this year! I'm not sure what she's having yet...right now, I think she's leaning toward a flip-flop cake. We shall see!

Have a great weekend!

Praising God!

2008-04-28T10:40:00.003-05:00

Wow! How easy is it to praise God when a situation has a happy ending? For me to experience joy and exclaim "Praise God!" and know that if the situation had turned out completely opposite of how I wanted, I'm still called to exclaim "Praise God!"

Here's an example:

Last week, we got news that a man...many of us knew him as one of the following: friend, brother in Christ, former classmate, husband, father, grandson, and son, had been killed in a plane crash. He was a pilot. That is horrible, tragic, and shocking news. Add to that that in his death, his wife was left a widow for the SECOND time...and she's 32, maybe 33 years old. Twice widowed. They have 2 children...a little boy, age 3 years and little girl, age 6 months. This woman blows my mind...in the face of tragedy, she doesn't think twice about saying, "This is God's plan for my life." Sure, I think that deep down, we might all know that... but I'm willing to confess to you right now that I don't know if I'd be able to voice that immediately after learning that my second husband had died suddenly.

That happened on Wednesday. Fast forward to yesterday...Sunday. My mother gets a call from my brother who is with his family in Tuscaloosa visiting his sister-in-law that has just had her first child. He tells mom that they are in the ER with Sam, my nephew. Now, if any of you know Sam...this wouldn't really be shock. We're all quite surprised that he's never been to the ER before...considering that he only knows one speed...WIDE OPEN! So, we assumed it was for stitches, maybe even a broken bone. Ethan then proceeds to tell her that everything is OK, Sam is going to be fine, but they had found him floating in the pool of the people they were staying with. I can't really explain how I felt when I heard this news. I just know that I can't count how many times I've thanked and praised God since we got that call... because it has a happy ending! Would I have been so inclined to shout it from the rooftops if the story had a different outcome? That has really given me something to think about!

Thank God for all he does for us. Although we can't see the big picture that He clearly has for us, I know that I trust Him...even if it might be hard to grasp it and proclaim it sometimes.

Right now, I'm thankful for my precious nephew.
It was a very scary and emotional day for everyone in our family yesterday, especially his parents. I thank God that He spared Sam, and I thank God for the kind of parents Ethan and Lisa are. They are wonderful, attentive parents, and they need to be reassured of that. Thanks for all your prayers and phone calls! It means a lot to us all! Also, please continue to pray for the Faulkner family during their time of grief and loss. "Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!." Psalm 150:6

Happy Easter!

2008-03-24T10:11:00.011-05:00

Well, while I REEEEEEEEALLY need to be cleaning my house, I'm sitting here trying to catch up on my blog reading and posting! I thought I'd pass along some pictures of our Easter weekend. We spent the weekend at my mom and dad's house. My brother and his family came in Friday night and stayed through Saturday night, so we did our egg dying and hunt on Saturday. It was fun. Here are a couple of pictures from that:

Also, the kids were pretty excited about the movies that Mimi gave them!

Here they are dressed up on Sunday...Brady is my "maker of goofy faces!" The second one is of Macy, Brady, and Mimi.

Lastly, this is the third spring that the swans have nested behind mom and dad's house. We're looking forward to watching another drama unfold with the swan family!

Remember Me?

2008-03-03T19:32:00.006-06:00

Well, it's been a while, I know! I thought it only fitting to follow up my last post with a video of Macy performing part of it. The song was in our children's play called "Power" that they performed this past weekend. They did a great job, and put LOTS of time and effort into preparing for it! This video (assuming I can get it on here) is of Macy (singing first) and another friend, Annsley, singing the first verse. The quality isn't as good when I transferred it to youtube...oh well. Even though the quality isn't great, you can still see Macy trip on the way back to the risers. It was really kind of funny...especially if you'd been able to see the look on her face! I'm sure there was a better way to post this video, but I'm not very computer savvy. I tried to used blogger's video "thing," but my file was too big! Anyway...this is as good as I could get it...

Also, I had to bake a cake for Dr. Seusses (is that the plural of "Seuss"?) birthday today. Macy's teacher is a HUGE Dr. Seuss fan, and she always celebrates his birthday in a big way. She asked me to make a cake, and here's what I came up with:

I was happy with it...especially since it was the easiest cake I've ever made! All I did was cut a little off the sides of a 9x13, and there you have it! And only 2 colors! Wow...I didn't know a cake could be done that quickly! Instead, I'd rather torture myself and try to see how difficult it can be!!

I'll try not to go so long between posts next time! I know, I always say that! But, with the upcoming events I've got...ladies retreat, Upward conference, and Brady starting to play Upward soccer...I should have plenty of material to pull from! Have a great week!

The Power of Your Love

2008-01-26T11:43:00.000-06:00

Lord, I come to You
Let my heart be changed, renewed
Flowing from the grace
That I've found in You

And Lord I've come to know
The weaknesses I see in me
Will be stripped away
By the power of Your love

Hold me close
Let Your love surround me
Bring me near
Draw me to Your side
And as I wait
I'll rise up like the eagle
And I will soar with You
Your spirit leads me on
In the power of Your love

Lord, unveil my eyes
Let me see You face to face
The knowledge of Your love
As You live in me

And Lord, renew my mind
As Your will unfolds in my life
In living everyday
By the power of Your love

Hold me close
Let Your love surround me
Bring me near
Draw me to Your side
And as I wait
I'll rise up like the eagle
And I will soar with You
Your spirit leads me on
In the power of Your love

Birthdays and Baking!

2007-12-19T13:26:00.000-06:00

Well, it's that time of year at the Wallace household! Time for me to stress myself out by doing some good 'ol Holiday baking...not to mention the birthday cake! That's right...today, my baby turns 4 years old!! That's CRAZY! I just thought I'd take this time to post some pictures...his cake, his party, my Christmas cookies, and the cookie cake I made for Brady to take to preschool on his actual birthday, since we celebrated Monday night. He wanted to go to Cracker Barrel for his birthday! How many 4 year olds do you know that want corn, carrots, and macaroni and cheese for their birthday dinner? And, he ate 1 bite of cake. He's not a big sweet eater. Here is his cake:

He just looks SO big! Here he is with all his loot! The sad thing is, he still has gifts coming from his aunts and uncles...not to mention CHRISTMAS PRESENTS! We're going to have to add a room on to the house!
He was really happy about his new pirate ship from mommy and daddy!
Finally, here are the pictures of the Christmas cookies and birthday cookie! I only have 1 more thing that I'm planning to bake. I should finish my cream cheese pound cake this afternoon, and then I'll be done...unless I think of something else I need to do! Have a great Christmas!!!!!!!!!!

Awesome!

2007-11-26T15:54:00.000-06:00

I don't usually recommend movies, because I'm afriad people will say, "What was the big deal about that? I don't know what was so great about it!" But, I don't really care this time. I just saw "August Rush" last night...and it was amazing!! I highly recommend it...so that's the chance I'm willing to take! If you go see it because I said it was good, first of all, I guess I'd be flattered. Then, if you don't like it, my apologies, but something is wrong with you! Ha! Let me know if you've seen it and what you thought about it!

I Feel Special!

2007-11-18T22:25:00.000-06:00

Well, thanks to those of you that have bugged me about posting something new! That just lets me know that there are a couple of you reading!

I realize that I have gotten severely behind on my posting, so this is more or less a "catch up" post. I'll start with Halloween....check out my pirate and pirate lass!!

After we got Halloween behind us, a few of us from church took off to Kentucky to help our youth minister lead worship at a youth conference. It was an AWESOME trip....thanks in HUGE part to our accomadations. If I could only use one picture to try to describe this hotel, uh, lodge, to you...I think this one sums it up. This is the celing in the hallway just outside our room:
People, if you ever find yourselves in Gilbertsville, Kentucky...please be sure you stay at the Ken-Bar Lodge! It rocks!!!!

Now, I guess the latest thing to report is Brady's last injury. I picked him up from preschool on Wednesday, and his teacher said, "He had a little accident with his finger today. We've put Neosporin and a bandaid on it, but it's pretty gross. He really took the hyde off of it." (I'm not sure if that's how you spell "hyde" in this instance...I can't say that I've ever actually typed that sentence...) Well, she really tried to prepare me, but I didn't think much of it. That night, I put him in the tub before church and he started screaming saying his finger was stinging. So, I got him bathed, and when I got him out, we changed the bandages...YUK! She wasn't kidding! It wasn't until the next day that I asked her to tell me again exactly what happened. Brady was telling me one thing, and the teacher gave me the other story. He and another little boy were playing with a chair. They had it turned upside down. The other little boy decided to stand on it...with Brady's finger under it. Well, Brady didn't cry about it, he just decided to pull his finger out from under the chair...tearing a big piece of skin off. Here is the result (for the full effect, click on the picture...you'll get a HUGE close up of his ripped up finger, and as I just noticed, you will also get a nice shot of the chocolate in the corner of his mouth...darned tootsie rolls!):
Pretty nasty...the picture really doesn't do it justice! It's been fun to keep doctored up! It's really healed pretty quickly. Now, if we could just get rid of the bronchitis! Oh the joys of parenthood!

Well, both kids are out all week for Thanksgiving...I don't think I'll be posting any this week, but I hope to not go as long as I have this time! My grandmother will be 90 on Friday, so we'll be having a big party over the holiday! Hope you all have a great one!!!

Priceless Gifts

2007-10-12T09:23:00.000-05:00

Well, I have to give a shout out to my great sister-in-law, Etta. She is a very creative person, and an even more creative gift giver. She is a great scrapbooker, which I am not. For Christmas the year after Macy was born, she gave me a scrapbook of her first year of life. She did the same the year after Brady was born...gave me a scrapbook of Brady's first year, that is... not another one of Macy's first year! HA! I wouldn't take ANYTHING for those special gifts! I still get them out and look at them on a fairly regular basis. Just when I thought she couldn't come up with anything sweeter, she managed to pull this one out of her hat a couple of years ago for Christmas. Now, I realize this post is 2 years late, but I pass these pictures a million times a day in my home, and I look at them nearly every time! I LOVE them! Thanks, Etta, for being so thoughtful! I have some priceless memories of my kiddos, thanks to you!

Forgive the angle...I couldn't take it straight on because there is a window that was reflecting on them. You get the idea, though! Click on the picture to make it bigger and you can see the pics that she put in the frames. Check out my chubby boy in that first picture! Hilarious!

While I'm giving kuddos to family members, I'd like to say a big "thank you" to my in-laws for taking care of my baby this past weekend. For those of you that don't know, Macy and Brady spent the night with Nana and Pawpaw while I was out of town, and as luck would have it, Brady got the stomach virus. Nana got a big throw back into being the mother of small children and handled it well, proving to herself, and all of us, that she's still got it! I hated that I wasn't there to take care of him, but I know Nana did a great job and proved to be super-Nana! Thanks again! Oh, and so far so good...Macy hasn't had it (despite the fact that she was in the bed with him when he got it)! Knock on wood...it's been nearly a week now!

God Bless America!!

2007-10-04T22:45:00.001-05:00

Catching Up

2007-10-01T08:36:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been a while....again! Sorry. I know y'all are getting sick of seeing the "High School Muscial" post. Especially since it's star has been busted for taking nude pics of herself. Niiiiice. Anyway...moving on.

Things have been hectic around the Wallace household, as usual. Macy started soccer a few weeks ago. Here are a couple of pictures from her first game:

Taking a break...one of the big differences in the Instructional league (4&5 year olds) and the 1st-3rd grade division is that instead of playing 3 minutes before they do substitutions, they play 6 minutes. This really took some getting used to by all the girls!

Another difference is that they have goalies in this league. Here is her coach (and her daddy) helping her get her "goalie gear" straight. She really does a great job defending the goal, I must say! She's having a great time, and so are we. UPWARD soccer has been a great addition at Cross Point.

Now, I have to brag on my baby boy! He has really taken an interest lately in learning to write. That makes me quite happy! Macy was always intersted in reading and writing and just learning stuff from a very early age, and I didn't think I'd get that lucky twice. Well, he has surprised us. He likes to be read to as much as she always did. He asks more questions than she ever did (a few examples: "Does the devil have ankle bones?" "Do your ears have bones in them?" "What's a christian?" "Am I a christian?"....just to name a few) He love sharks, whales, and dinosaurs and can tell you LOTS of facts about any of the 3. Needless to say, he makes me proud. Anyway, he's known how to spell his name (and his "sissy's" name) for a while now, but he has just started writing them. Here is his latest work:

How cute is that? Well, I think it is anyway!

Heading off to Nashville this weekend for the ZOE conference. If you've never been, you should give it shot! It's awesome! Check it out at www.zoegroup.org

Kudos, Disney Channel!

2007-09-05T17:19:00.000-05:00

I have to give a shout out to Disney, here. We love the "High School Musical" movies in my house. I like to use the kids as an excuse to watch, but truth be told, I like them just as much (if not more)!! I'm a sucker for a good musical, and even more...a good CLEAN musical that the whole family can enjoy together. We have both soundtracks, and just the other day, my husband got in the car and made fun of me for listening to one of them without even having the kids with me! HA!

We'll be watching High School Musical 2 again this weekend, only this is the dance along version! Oh, that should be interesting! I won't be busting any moves, but I'm sure Macy will be!

So, if you have kids, use them as an excuse to see these really good family fun (although a little cheesy in part) movies! Enjoy!

What a Week!

2007-08-20T12:41:00.000-05:00

Well, there has been quite a lot happening in my family since I last posted. Most of you know that my husband lost his cousin, Kristin, on August 11. She was 28 years old and has 2 children, ages 2 and 4. She will be greatly missed, but we know that she's running in heaven right now. Since I've been in the family, Kristin has had struggles. In October of 1996, before Jarrod and I begin dating in January, she was in a car wreck that left her partially paralyzed. The doctors told her she probably wouldn't walk again, but she proved them wrong and was walking 6 months after her accident. She had recently had lots of trouble with one of her feet, and had major surgery on it only about 1 1/2 weeks before she died. She was SO excited about the possibility of that surgery being the answer to her trouble with her foot. I know that now, she isn't having any trouble with that foot and is getting around better than any of us!

She was such a fun, happy person and I'm so glad that I was a part of her family for nearly 10 years! I wanted to share a quote that she has on her myspace page...I think it's awesome that she had this attitude, and it REALLY speaks to me since she's gone home:

"Someday everything will all make perfect sense. So for now, Laugh at the confusion, Smile through the tears, and keep reminding yourself that everything happens for a reason"

First Grade Girl

2007-08-08T13:24:00.001-05:00

Well, it's hard to believe, but today was Macy's first day of first grade! She was very excited. It's so different from kindergarten. Now, she knew her classmates, so it was like she was going back to see friends instead of going into a brand new situation! She was thrilled to be in the same class as several of her classmates from last year. She was especially glad to be back in class with her best friend, Abby. Here are some pictures that I took this morning. I still have to post about our trip to the aquarium in Chattanooga last weekend. Hopefully, I'll do that soon. Have a great rest of the week!!

Here she is ready to go to school:

Here she is outside of her new classroom:
Macy and Abby:

And, my personal favorite, Brady telling his "Sissy" goodbye:

Last Beach Trip...

2007-07-31T20:20:00.000-05:00

Well, we had to come home from the beach...bummer. I love going, and we were lucky enough to go twice this year. I only am taking the time to post a few pics. We had a great time. This trip was with my in-laws. Here is a picture of Macy with Brady and her cousin, Justin Michael. Can you tell she's the little mother??

How 'bout the boys playing cars in the sand:
This one was just TOO sweet not to share. They really are loving toward each other most of the time! This was not a posed picture...it just happened:
Now, for the biggest news in our family. After 2 years of listening to her beg...I finally let her...
cut her hair! I know...big deal for us! She has literally been asking for 2 years. We inched it up 2, then 3, then 4 inches. This was a big one! She is SO happy! I knew it would be cute, but I also knew she'd look older! I've been wanting her to keep it long because it looked pretty...and I never had pretty long hair. I was forced to keep mine short because it was stringy! I guess I was living through her!

School starts next week...I'll have a first grader. Hard to believe! It doesn't seem possible! Hope you all have a good rest of the week.

2007-07-10T16:08:00.000-05:00

Well, for whatever reason, blogger won't let me enter a title for this post. So, you will soon see, it's all about my little birthday girl! Her birthday was yesterday, and we had her party Saturday. I thought I'd post a few pics from the party. She had a great time...we love having it at the church building so that they can just run around and be kids...yet we don't have to worry about them destroying our house! Here's my favorite picture of the day...me and my big 6 year old girl!!
Here is a picture of her and Mimi (my mom, for any of you that might not know that).
Since Macy had 2 cakes, (which by the way turned out to be a wise choice this year...we almost ate them both) she wanted to put 3 candles on one and 3 candles on the other:
This picture is HILARIOUS to me. Brady was so sad that he didn't get to help her blow her candles out...he just didn't understand why the day was all about Macy. In this picture, his face is telling you all exactly how he felt about not being able to help:
It's always nice to get clothes...and I am lucky to have a daughter that gets just as excited about clothes as she does toys and such! She was pretty happy to have a new fall outfit from Mimi!
And finally, she was rather excited to get a new camera from me and Jarrod. She's about to drive us nuts taking pictures of anything and everything!!

She also got a pretty American Girl doll from her Nana, but I was so busy helping her get into it without messing it up, I failed to get a picture of her with it! Thanks to everyone for the fun day and the great gifts! She's loving using her gift cards, and will enjoy her new earrings, too (today is the 6 week mark...she can take hers out if she wants too).

Thank y'all for continuing to check in on my blog...even though 9 times out of 10, it's about my kids! Sorry, they're the most exciting thing I've got going on in my life right now!

Well...one other exciting thing...me and a bunch of girlfriends are going to B'ham Thursday night to the American Idol concert! We're very excited! Maybe that will bring a post that has nothing to do with my kids! We leave on Saturday for the beach. I'm sure I'll post about that trip as well. Have a great weekend!

More Baking!!

2007-07-06T15:13:00.001-05:00

Well, the time has come for me to show yet another couple of cakes! Yes, I said "couple" because I've gone completely mad! I always think that the cakes I make look small...never mind that they are made from a regular cake mix that would fit into a 9x13...they just don't look like they would feed many people. For that reason, there have been more than 1 of Macy's birthday's that I've made 2 cakes. One year, I think it was the year I made the Dora cake, I also just made a regular sheet cake. The year I made the butterfly, I actually made 2, and I don't even think we cut one of them!! So, this year...what did I decide? That we needed more than one, yet again. There are going to be a lot of adults at this party, and she's invited more friends than she has in the past...so.....

She had already decided on a beach theme. The cake she wanted was a palm tree. After thinking about the fact that I needed something else...I decided to pull down the soccer ball pan from last year and create...you guessed it...a beach ball. At this point in my "parenting career," I've made several birthday cakes. I'm getting a little more lazy than I used to be. This year, I used a bigger star tip so I wouldn't have arthritis by the end of the day! There are also a few more little holes where you can see the cake peeking through...so don't look too closely! That being said...we're ready for the party tomorrow. All that's left now is for you to feast your eyes on the cakes! Ta Dah!!

Happy 4th!

2007-07-03T22:17:00.001-05:00

Well, here it is...sooner than you expected, you're being forced to look at some of my baking adventures! We're traveling to my Grandmother's for the 4th, so I thought I'd take some snazzy cupcakes! Behold:
I'm such a dork! Trust me, my 89 1/2 year old grandmother will think she's got the most genius granddaughter in the world!

Coming this weekend...the palm tree cake and pictures from Macy's upcoming birthday party! I know you're all on the edge of your seats!

Also, if you're a reader of this blog and haven't already done so, I challenge you all to do the "50 Things About Me." (see previous post). It's so fun and I love hearing what you all have to say!

50 Things About Me

2007-06-28T17:04:00.000-05:00

OK...I can't believe I got tagged! Thanks a lot Cristin! I really thought I could avoid this one! So...here we go. Get ready to be bored!

1. I spend WAAAAY too much time on the computer.
2. I love to cook...
3. Especially bake.
4. Macy will be 6 next month, and Brady will be 4 in December, and I've made all their birthday cakes so far.
5. They were (in this order): a heart, a duck, Cinderella, a tractor, Dora, Lightning McQueen, a butterfly, a soccer ball, and coming next month...a palm tree.
6. At some point, you have been, or will be, forced to look at pictures of my baking adventures on my blog!
7. I LOVE Disney World!!!!!
8. I LOOOOVE the beach!
9. We went to Gulf Shores with the same group of friends every summer for probably 12-15 years.
10. I've got some BIG 'OL calf muscles ;o)
11. My parents and in-laws both have swimming pools.
12. We swim 4-5 times a week during the summer.
13. I could eat Chick Fil A three meals a day
14. My circle of friends is SO important to me.
15. I crave more weekend getaways with "my girls"
16. I love, love, LOVE to sing.
17. The radio in my car is NEVER off.
18. I can't imagine my life without music.
19. I have a newfound addiction to Karen Kingsbury books.
20. I love mechanical pencils
21. My favorite music is 70's and 80's.
22. I'm not ashamed to admit that I love both Barry Manilow and the Carpenters.
23. I feel like no one gives a rip about what I'm saying right now.
24. I LOOOOVE flip flops!!!
25. We'll be leaving for the beach on my 31st birthday.
26. I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M ALMOST 31!
27. Water is one of my favorite drinks.
28. I can still do a darn good toe touch off the diving board!
29. I loved being a cheerleader in high school.
30. At "Who's Who" in high school, I got Best School Spirit.
31. I regret not going away to college.
32. I'm so anal about squeezing the tube from the bottom that I bought one of those contraptions that slides on the end of the toothpaste tube.
33. I've worshipped at the same congregation for 22 years.
34. My dad has been the worship leader there for those 22 years.
35. We lived in Atlanta for 6 weeks between my kindergarten and 1st grade year.
36. I went to the same school from K-12th grade.
37. I'm still good friends with some of my friends from kindergarten.
38. I am EXTREMELY sarcastic!
39. I'm very close to my mom.
40. I went from having no nieces or nephews to having 2 sweet nephews within 2 weeks of each other.
41. I hate putting away clean laundry.
42. I love BIG Cheez-its.
43. My cell phone is pink.
44. The toilet paper HAS TO roll over the TOP of the roll.
45. I'm TOTALLY addicted to General Hospital...yes, I said that out loud!
46. I HATE dishonesty--what a cop-out. Just tell the truth!
47. Nothing makes me prouder than seeing my children's accomplishments.
48. I took piano lessons for 9 years.
49. Everytime I buy a bottle of vitamins for myself (other than when I was on pre-natals), I forget to take them and they expire.
50. My #1 goal in life is to raise 2 good christian children.

Alright...there you have it. Now, it's your turn Amy B...and while I'm tagging, go for it Scarlett!

Little Fishy

2007-06-22T10:02:00.000-05:00

Well, things have been busy around here, as usual. We had VBS last week, and this week, we've had swimming lessons. They take at the home of a friend. Their teacher is also a friend that I've known most of my life, and we're really thankful. This is Macy's third year to take...and she probably wouldn't have had to take again, but I wanted her to get one more year under her belt, and she LOVES it! Brady, on the other had, wasn't too sure about it. He didn't like it the first day very much. He cried some, but over all, did well. The next couple of days, he's done great! Last night, we went to my in-laws, and he was practicing what he's learned! Take a look at my sweet little fishy!!!

He did even better at lessons today. I'm so glad that it looks like he's going to enjoy the water as much as the rest of his beach loving family!! Have a great weekend!

Even More Grown Up!

2007-05-31T09:25:00.000-05:00

I know that I've emailed several of you this picture already, but I thought I'd share it with the rest of the blog world. Macy got her ears pierced on Tuesday night. She's been talking about it since we were at the beach. I had never had an age in my head that I thought was "old enough" to get it done...I just wanted her to be able to take care of them herself. She twists them all the time...I just help her put the medicine on them. She's so proud. Here she is sporting her new earrings:

She looks SO grown up in this picture!! Yikes!

We had a great time at the beach! Here are some of the pictures that I took. Have a great week!!

The Latest "Goings-On"

2007-05-14T10:11:00.000-05:00

Well, we've had a busy few weeks around the Wallace household. With school coming to an end, we've had end of year programs and such. Also, Macy is playing UPWARD soccer again at church. She's really enjoying it, and getting better each game. I just thought I'd post a few pictures of what we've been up too lately! Here are a couple of my little soccer player:

Here are a couple from her kindergarten program. The first one is of her solo (she was also a "month of the year girl" which explains the February hat and the mega-heart on her shirt!) The second one if of her and Mrs. Mills, her wonderful teacher, when she got her graduation certificate!

And what post would be complete without a picture of Brady...well...just being Brady!!
My first reaction was terror, because I just KNEW he'd used a Sharpie! When I made him show me which marker he'd used, I was relieved enough to take a picture!!

Well, we're headed to the beach on Saturday after Macy's last soccer game. I'm sure there will be many, many pics to come after that trip! Some of you computer savvy people might have to give me a clue about slide shows...I've never taken the time to even try to do one! I'll be busy this week getting ready to go to the beach, so I probably won't post again until we get home. Please pray for our safety. Have a good week!

Aren't Y'all Sick of Looking at Sanjaya??

2007-05-02T17:22:00.000-05:00

Well, I don't really have anything major to post about, but I know everyone who stumbles across this blog is getting sick of looking at Sanjaya!! So, I thought I'd post about the highs and lows of my past 2 days!

Is there anything worse than having to drop a bundle on your car?? If so, I'm not sure what it could be. Try this on for size....we've been having trouble with our trusty 1998 Honda Accord for a while now. Long story somewhat shorter...the dealership kept insiting that it was the tires making the noise that sounded something like a helicopter...but I just didn't see how that was possible. I insisted that someone ride with me..."Oh, yes ma'am...that's the tires. Sorry it's so loud, but there's nothing you can do but get new tires" (which we DID NOT need). I bugged them to check it out...insisting that I didn't think it was the tires, but they wouldn't budge. So, we dropped $350 on new tires at Sam's...drove out of Sam's parking lot....SAME LOUD NOISE!!!!!!! It's so loud that we can't hear each other talk...turn the radio up SO loud to even be able to make out the lyrics, etc....Well, I drove out of Sam's parking lot straight to the Honda dealership. I told them that we got new tires..."Oh, yes ma'am...that's the only thing you could do!" Then, I promptly informed him that it was making the EXACT SAME NOISE AS BEFORE! Here's what's ALMOST funny...he said, "Well, it must be something else, then!" YA THINK???????????? Oh, I was LIVID! Another guy rode with me, informed me that there was no doubt in his mind that it was a wheel barring (sp?) and that I don't even need to be driving the car. He said it was in the top 3 worst he'd ever heard. He couldn't believe that the other guy that rode with me before thought it was the tires. So, thank to their incompetance, I've been endangering my family EVERY DAY FOR THE PAST 2 MONTHS! I left the car, they said they'd fix it for $320-something and I said, "NOPE!" I informed them that since I'd taken their word for it, after practically begging them to try and look at other things besides the tires, and spent $350 on new tires, I no longer had $320 to spend! We argued, he didn't budge, I lost it, got Jarrod to call, he got them down to $147, and we're now done with the Honda dealership forever. But, we're riding in peace.

Now, from one of the worst afternoon's to one of the best. So, you all know by now that Tuesday is Nana day...the kids go after school and stay until bedtime with the in-laws. So, I have a long overdue gift certificate to the new Spa at the Shoals that Jarrod got me for my 30th birthday. Yesterday was the day! Check out the "relaxation room:"
My appointment was at 5, but I got there early to enjoy the relaxation room. Sat in the whirlpool for a while, read some of my book. Very nice. Then, the new man in my life....Tyrus. If I ever have the pleasure of getting another massage at the Spa, it will come from Tyrus. I had never had a massage there, so I just told them that it didn't matter who I saw. After it was over, she informed me that Tyrus was the most requested. I see why. It was great (though I'm quite sore today...I had some major knots in my neck, shoulders, and lower back....some of which probably developed the day before while dealing with the Honda people!!!

So, that's two days out of my life lately. I'm sure you're so glad you "tuned in!" I'll try to post sooner, and something that y'all might actually care about next time!!

WOOOOOHOOOOO!!!!!

2007-04-19T08:14:00.000-05:00

NEW YORK Apr 18, 2007 (AP)— Sanjaya Malakar, the under-talented but unflappable singer who horrified and captivated millions in his improbable "American Idol" run, was finally voted off the show Wednesday night. "I'm fine," he told Ryan Seacrest. "It was an amazing experience." "I can promise you: We won't soon forget you," Seacrest replied.

HALLELUJAH!

Country??

2007-04-16T21:37:00.000-05:00

Well, if we have to stomach him for at least one more week, we might as well get some entertainment out of it! This is country week, you know!! What in the WORLD will he be singing??? I can't wait to find out. I think this is the first (and only) week I'm actually looking forward to hearing Sanjaya!
Stay tuned...I still believe that before the season is over, we'll find out that Sanjaya is, in fact, a female.

Donkey Tales!

2007-04-04T09:58:00.000-05:00

HA! I bet those of you that don't go to Cross Point to church are really wondering about the title of this post. This is the name of the children's play that we just completed. It was SO cute! The kids worked so hard, and we really enjoyed seeing the fruits of their labor! Of course, I was extremely proud of Macy. She didn't have a big speaking role, but she had 2 solos. I was so proud that she did it without any hesitation...and she was really quite good! I'm not just saying that because she's my daughter, either! Here are a few pictures from the production:

We also enjoyed some Easter fun this past weekend. My brother and his family were here, so mom went ahead and passed out easter baskets, since they won't be here this weekend for Easter. Brady's favorite gift was this frog:
Here's another one of the favorite activities at Mimi and Papa's...the boys are enjoying it together:
Lastly, what post would be complete without a picture of my little "ladies man?"
Have a great rest of the week and a blessed Easter!

My Handsome Man

2007-03-19T08:45:00.000-05:00

I thought it was time to shift the focus from my drama queen to my handsome devil! Not a whole lot to post about, I just wanted to post a new picture of him!

We've got an interesting week coming up...Macy is out of school for spring break. I'm sure this week will produce some sort of crazy thing to post about! Have a great week, everyone!

C'mon, Vogue!

2007-03-06T15:24:00.000-06:00

Well, I just thought I'd post a couple of new pics of my little drama queen. She's just found her sunglasses that she'd lost, so she wants to wear them all the time now....here she is posing:

There will be pics of the drama KING coming soon. For now, I'll just tell y'all a story. It's funny, but not really. I guess it just sounds funny and very typical BOY! When I picked him up from pre-school today, his teacher said that he and a couple of other little boys had to sit in time-out for wrestling on the playground! WHAT? If Macy had to sit in time-out for any reason at school, it would just kill her! I guess this is what I have to look forward to. I had a little chat with him. He told me that it hurt his feelings when he had to sit in time-out. Well, guess what? Don't do anything that's going to make you have to sit in time-out, son!! He now knows the good 'ol "if you get in trouble at school, you'll get in trouble at home" rule!

One last funny about him....now, keep in mind he's THREE. Today, I asked him if he wanted me to send $1 for pizza or if he wanted me to pack his lunch. He informed me that he wanted me to pack his lunch because "I don't feel like pizza today." Sheesh!

Before Hyperactivity Sets In

2007-02-23T14:42:00.000-06:00

I thought I'd share the sweet scene that I encountered when I went in to wake Macy up this morning.

It's this type of sweet calm that I enjoy briefly before I pick her up from school and utter chaos ensues!!

More On Growing Up...

2007-02-07T11:01:00.000-06:00

Well, check her out. She lost her first tooth a little over a week ago. She pulled it herself! Wow... it really makes her look grown up.

Also, we're officially out of diapers/pull ups at my house (with the exception of overnight...he wakes up dry most mornings, but I really don't want to change sheets in the night, and since he crawls in our bed in the middle of the night most nights, I don't want to change OUR sheets)! It's bittersweet....I don't have a baby anymore, but the good news is, I DON'T HAVE A BABY ANYMORE! It's so nice that he'll just go to the potty on his own! I wondered if this day would ever come! I have Macy's grown-up looking picture posted, but I don't guess I'll post a picture of Brady in his underwear in case there are any perverts looking at this blog! :o)

Not much to report around here. Just thought I'd add a new post and get away from the somewhat depressing little book that I posted last month! Now...I have a couple of "lasts" to blog about....the last time he wore diapers/pullups and the last pictures we took of Macy with all her baby teeth! Time flies! But I'm enjoying the ride!

If You've Got A Minute...

2007-01-24T10:04:00.000-06:00

Well, I'll go ahead and tell y'all that this might be my longest post to date. First, I'll fill you in on a couple of things going on with us lately.

Last night, I went with a bunch of girls from church to see "Dreamgirls." I've been wanting to see it, but it took forever to come here. I liked it a lot...it was a typical musical...so if you don't like musicals, you won't like it. They do sing several of their conversations (in case you didn't know, that's what happens in a musical...HA!) Also, (knock on wood) Brady has decided that wearing underwear and using the potty aren't so bad! He's been doing great with his pottying....FINALLY! I think it clicked. Just one accident in the past several days! Yippie!

OK...now for the lenghty part! I took the kids to the library yesterday, and I found a book that I want to share. The title caught my eye, and then, the author. Karen Kingsbury. My mother-in-law is big into her books, so I was interested in what she had to offer in a children's book. It is great! If you don't have kids, you might not give a rip about this, but if you do...I think you'll enjoy it! My only mistake was not reading it myself before I sat down to read it to the kids! It was all I could do to muddle through it without crying like a baby! Enjoy!!

Long ago you came to me,
a miracle of firsts:
First smiles and teeth and baby steps,
a sunbeam on the burst.
But one day you will move away
and leave to me your past,
And I will be left thinking of
a lifetime of your lasts...

The last time that I held a bottle
to your baby lips.
The last time that I lifted you
and held you on my hip.

The last night when you woke up crying,
needing to be walked,
When last you crawled up with your blanket,
wanted to be rocked.

The last time when you ran to me,
still small enough to hold.
The last time that you said you'd marry
me when you grew old.
Precious, simple moments and
bright flashes from your past--
Would I have held on longer if
I'd known they were your last?

Our last adventure to the park,
your final midday nap,
The last time when you wore your favorite
faded baseball cap.

Your last few hours of kindergarten,
those last days of first grade,
Your last at bat in Little League,
last colored picture made.

I never said good-bye to all
your yesterdays long passed.
So what about tomorrow--
will I recognize your lasts?

The last time that you catch a frog
in that old backyard pond.
The last time that you run barefoot
across our fresh-cut lawn.
Silly, scattered images
will represent your past.
I keep on taking pictures,
never quite sure of your lasts...

The last time that I comb your hair
or stop a pillow fight.
The last time that I pray with you
and tuck you in at night.
The last time when we cuddle
with a book, just me and you.
The last time you jump in our bed
and sleep between us two.

The last piano lesson,
last vacation to the lake.
Your last few weeks of middle school,
last soccer goal you make.

I look ahead and dream of days
that haven't come to pass.
But as I do, I sometimes miss
today's sweet, precious lasts...

The last time that I help you with
a math or spelling test.

The last time when I shout that yes,
your room is still a mess.
The last time that you need me for
a ride from here to there.
The last time that you spend the night
with your old tattered bear.

My life keeps moving faster,
stealing precious days that pass.
I want to hold on longer--
want to recognize your lasts...

The last time that you need my help
with details of a dance.
The last time that you ask me for
advice about romance.

The last time that you talk to me
about your hopes and dreams.
The last time that you wear a jersey
for your high school team.

I've watched you grow and barely noticed
seasons as they pass.
If I could freeze the hands of time,
I'd hold on to your lasts.

For come some bright fall morning,
you'll be going far away.
College life will beckon
in a brilliant sort of way.
One last hug, one last good-bye,
one quick and hurried kiss.
One last time to understand
just how much you'll be missed.
I'll watch you leave and think how fast
our time together passed.

Let me hold on longer, God
to every precious last.

The Traveling Penguin

2007-01-15T19:23:00.000-06:00

This is the name of the book Macy will be studying at school this week. We were asked to make a suitcase out of a cereal box, so that as they study this book, they can stop in different "countries" and put something from each "country" in their suitcase. Now, I am what I like to call "creativity challenged." I was a little worried about this project. Now, this is a holiday, and I refused to go to Wal-Mart and spend a lot of money (well...ANY money for that matter) on a bunch of stuff for this project. Considering my "challenge" and the fact that I used only stuff I had around the house, I'm quite happy with the way it turned out! Behold, the suitcase!

There are just a few touches of glitter glue around a few of the flowers...you can't really see that in the picture. I am a little jealous that one of my friends (though she did go to Wal-Mart) hot-glued a drawer pull on the top of hers for a handle! I had to settle for some ribbon!

In other news, I start back to work VERY part time tomorrow. Brady will start pre school Tues. and Thurs. from 9-1, and I'll work during that time (at my old stomping ground...insurance office of a local home health care business). I'm looking forward to it, and I think Brady is really looking forward to school. He'll do great, but I am having a little trouble believing that he's old enough to go! My babies are just growing up too fast! Macy will cheer at her first "jr. pro" basketball game on Saturday! Pictures to come. Have a good week...AMERICAN IDOL IS BACK!!!!! WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Update...

2007-01-06T09:29:00.000-06:00

Well, I don't really have much to post about, I'm just getting sick of looking at that picture of all the Christmas cookies!

We had a good and BUSY Christmas and the new year has started out ok...unless you count Brady's bout with bronchitis. Here he is giving himself a breathing treatment:

He cracks me up! He's had to take them in the past, and he's always done well with them, but it was really funny to just hand him the mouthpiece and watch him sit there and take it himself!

We had a good time with all of our family over the Holiday. My brother and his wife were able to stay for several days. It was great to spend time with them. The kids get along SO well! Sam just LOVES my kids! He follows them around and is thoroughly entertained by them! It's great to see them interact. We enjoyed being with my in-laws as well, but my other nephew (bless him) had bronchitis over Christmas, so he wasn't himself! We look forward to getting those kiddos together again very soon!

I'll leave you with one of my favorite pictures that came out of the whole weekend! It's amazing that we were able to get a picture where all three of them were smiling so big and naturally! I guess when you're watching your Papa act like a gorilla, it's likely to make you laugh!!!

HO!HO!HO!

2006-12-21T22:52:00.000-06:00

Well, here is a picture (although it isn't great) of the baking project that I had going yesterday, and the one that I've done today...who knows if it will be worthy of having it's picture posted! I've worked off and on ALL DAY on a snowman cake. My brother and his wife gave me a very nice snowman cake pan for Christmas last year. I haven't ever used it. They are coming into town tomorrow, so I thought I'd whip up this cake! HA! It is a snowman that stands up! I got it all put together, but my icing was too thin. I was making it work, it just wasn't gorgeous, but it tasted great. So....I had it going pretty good...went to give Macy a bath...came back to the kitchen and the thing had broken in half and fallen over. I tried to put it back together with toothpicks and a lot of icing. I put it in the fridge in hopes that everything will "cement" itself!

This is a picture of the cake pan...followed by what the cake is SUPPOSED to look like:

HAHA! Yeah, right! That is the "easy" version...sprinkle it with powdered sugar. Well, that would be great, but then, how do you cover up the "seems" where you've "glued" the two halves together? We'll just say that mine doesn't look very good. It looks OK from a distance! When I get him out of the fridge tomorrow, we'll see if I can get a good picture of him! Happy Holidays!

KA-CHOW!!

2006-12-15T16:53:00.000-06:00

OK...so if you haven't seen Cars (then shame on you...it's a great movie!), the title of my post means nothing to you. If you have seen it, then you realize how clever I am having come up with that title for my post! HA!

So, here's a picture of what I've spent the majority of my day doing...

I must say that this is the cake that I'm probably proudest of to date. I'll tell you that I am NOT an artist at ALL...and when I got the cake out of the pan, I couldn't see any of the details. I pretty much did this whole thing looking at the picture (if you look at the lightning bolt behind the 95, it might be more obvious to you). Brady's birthday is Tuesday, but his party is tomorrow. I decided to go ahead and do the cake today because it is so time consuming. He loves it, and is ready to put the candles in it right now! Maybe I'll have more to post after his party tomorrow. Meanwhile, here's one last picture of the kiddos in their new shirts:

Time For A New Song!

2006-12-08T11:23:00.000-06:00

We're getting ready to head out early in the morning to go to Georgia and visit Calloway Gardens. My husband and kids, his parents, and his sister and her husband and son. We're looking forward to it, and I hope I'll have some fun pictures to post when we get home. Until then, it's time for me to post some lyrics! I can't get these out of my head! I can listen to them over and over, and never get tired of what they say. It's amazing to me that someone is able to come up with all these different descriptions of God. Isn't it amazing how we veiw Him differently at different times in our lives!? This song makes those visions SO clear to me.

Pencil marks on a wall

I wasn't always this tall

You scattered some monsters from beneath my bed

You watched my team win

You watched my team lose

Watched when my bicycle went down again

And when I was weak, unable to speak

Still I could call You by name

And I said, Elbow Healer, Superhero

Come if You can

And You said, I AM

Only sixteen, life is so mean

What kind of curfew is at 10pm?

You saw my mistakes

Watched my heart break

Heard when I swore I'd never love again

And when I was weak, unable to speak

Still I could call You by name

And I said, Heartache Healer, Secret Keeper

Be my best friend

And You said, I AM

You saw me wear white by pale candlelight

I said forever to what lies ahead

Two kids and a dream, with kids that can scream

Too much it might seem when it's 2am

And when I am weak, unable to speak

Still I will call You by name

Oh Shepherd, Savior, Pasture Maker

Hold onto my hand

And You say, I AM

The winds of change and circumstance blow in and all around us

So we find a foothold that's fimiliar

And bless the moments that we feel You nearer

When life had begun, I was woven and spun

You let the angels dance around the throne

And who can say when, but they'll dance again

When I am free and finally headed home

I will be weak, unable to speak

Still I will call You by name

Creator, Maker, Life Sustainer

Comforter, Healer, my Redeemer

Lord and King, Beginning and the End

I AM,

Yes, I AM

Thankful

2006-11-28T12:54:00.000-06:00

Obviously, we've all just been through a week where the focus was on being Thankful. I like to think that as Christians, we don't limit our thanksgiving to one week of the year! I know that when Thanksgiving rolls around, it does make us focus more on the things that we give thanks for. Among the more obvious ones for me: healthy kids, family, friends, church family, health...that list can go on and on. But one thing that I have come to realize lately that is SO important to me, and that I'm SO thankful for, is music.

This might seem strange (to some of you, I know it doesn't, because some of you love music as much as I do). I can't remember a time in my life where music didn't play a huge role. My dad has been a song leader all of my life, and for a large part of my life, was a choral director. I grew up with that. I have a tape of my dad and I singing together when I was 2 years old (we played it at my wedding just before he walked me down the isle). I took piano lessons for 9 years. I sang in chorus from 7th grade until I graduated. I sing on the praise team at church...music is probably about the most consistent thing in my life! There isn't a day that goes by that I don't hear music, play music, or sing music. Thank God for the gift of song!!!

I have really come to realize lately that music is the way that I communicate best with God. The praise songs that we sing (and that are a constant on my car radio) say exactly what I would like to express to God! Music/song is MY best form of worship...it's not for everyone, and each person has their own personal way that they feel most comfortable worshipping, and mine is speaking to God, and crying out to Him, through song. Sometimes, when I beat myself up for not praying as often as I should, I remind myself that I've been in prayer while I'm listening to or singing these songs to God.

There have been several times when I've posted song lyrics as my post for the day. I have been listening to a CD lately that has several on there that I would like to post at some point, but today, I thought it would be fitting to post one called Gratitude.

Send some rain, would You send some rain?

'Cause the earth is dry and needs to drink again

And the sun is high and we are sinking in the shade

Would You send a cloud, thunder long and loud?

Let the sky grow black and send some mercy down

Surely You can see that we are thirsty and afraid

But maybe not, not today

Maybe You'll provide in other ways

And if that's the case...

We'll give thanks to You with gratitude

For lessons learned in how to thirst for You

How to bless the very sun that warms our face

If You never send us rain

Daily bread, give us daily bread

Bless our bodies, keep or children fed

Fill our cups, then fill them up again tonight

Wrap us up and warm us through

Tucked away beneath our sturdy roofs

Let us slumber safe from danger's view this time

Or maybe not, not today

Maybe You'll provide in other ways

And if that's the case...

We'll give thanks to You with gratitude

A lesson learned to hunger after You

That a starry sky offers a better view if no roof is overhead

And if we never taste that bread

Oh, the differences that often are between

Everything we want and what we really need

So grant us peace, Jesus, grant us peace

Move our hearts to hear a single beat

Between alibis and enemies tonight

Or maybe not, not today

Peace might be another world away

And if that's the case...

We'll give thanks to You with gratitude

For lessons learned in how to trust in You

That we are blessed beyond what we could ever dream

In abundance or in need

And if You never grant us peace

But Jesus, would You please

The Lion King

2006-11-15T11:44:00.000-06:00

WOW! It was fabulous! I am so glad that I was able to see this play! For those of you that don't know (and might not even care...but humor me) my mother-in-law took me and Macy to Nashville last night to see The Lion King! It was amazing! What a spectacle! That's the only way I know to put it! The costumes were incredible... the set....it was all so neat. Macy loved it too. We didn't get home until 1:15 this morning, but it was worth it. She slept all the way home (yes, it was a school night, but it was the only night we could get tickets) and she woke up happy this morning...mainly because she got to wear her Lion King t-shirt to school! I intend to take a nap today when Brady does! It's a nice gloomy day for it!

One of the highlights of my evening was running into several people that I knew. It is funny that in a place that size, I was able to see 6 people that I never get to see. The funniest was that 2 of my...well, let's just call it what it is...pretty much 2 of my extended family members sat RIGHT IN FRONT OF US. What are the odds? In that huge theatre? So, hello again Ben and Laurie (if you happen to be reading)! It was great to see y'all!

Well, that's about all I've got to say. It was a fantastic theatre experience that I would highly recommend to you all! Thanks to Nana for taking us!!! Oh, and here's a picture of me and Macy ready for the trip to Nashvegas!!

Throw Back to American Idol

2006-11-07T10:20:00.000-06:00

DISCLAIMER: If you didn't follow American Idol, or if you cannot even stomach the thought of country music, this post is not for you!

Well....I've got to say that, for the most part, I really enjoyed the CMA Awards last night. I don't listen to country music nearly as much as I used too, but I tuned in last night because I am fond of several of the people that were scheduled to perform. Then, I heard that Carrie Underwood was nominated for some of the "biggies." "Jesus, Take The Wheel" was nominated for a couple of song awards (which Brooks and Dunn beat out with the song that just wouldn't go away...but I'm happy for Craig, Brad!!). She was also nominated for the Horizon Award and Female Vocalist of the Year! Now, I know Martina McBride has won this award 4 times in the past. Here was her competition: Martina McBride, Sara Evans, Gretchen Wilson, and Faith Hill. SHE WON! She beat out these women that are all so great (with the exception of Grethen Wilson, in my humble opinion). I was glad for her...I've followed her since her American Idol days! So, here's my little shout out to American Idol and Carrie Underwood! Not to mention that she also took home the Horizon Award....also some stiff competition in that category!

OH, and speaking of American Idol, did anyone notice who it seemed Carrie had brought along for her date? Remember him?

Anthony Fedorov! Pretty good picture, huh? I'm looking forward to kicking off another season in January...right? I think that's when they start showing all the crazy auditions! They came to Birmingham this year! I can only imagine the people they'll pull out to make Alabama look like a bunch of rednecks! Great!

Trunk or Treat!!

2006-10-28T21:35:00.000-05:00

We've had a big day! We started off at Mars Hill (where Macy goes to school) for Punkin' Day (games, food, etc...kind of a small scale carnival). We were there several hours. Came home for a rest, then got ready to go to our Harvest Festival and Trunk or Treat at church. It was great! It is a FABULOUS outreach...I will be anxious to hear how many people came. Last year, we estimated around 1500. I believe it was bigger this year. The kids had a great time...and looked cute, if I do say so myself! Tomorrow, we're headed to Huntsville after church to see Disney on Ice! I think me, my parents, and my husband are just as excited as the kids!! I'm also quite excited about the time change! After this crazy day, I welcome the extra hour!!

Farewell, Overnight Guest!

2006-10-27T10:07:00.000-05:00

Well, our little "friend" finally left. After Jarrod pushed his "house" outside, I kept checking throughout the day, and he never moved. He slept most all day. When I got ready to leave for church Wed. night, I checked on him one more time. That's when I took these pictures. He was obviously awake, and just looking at me! It was starting to rain, so I figured that he would be gone when we got home from church. I was correct. I guess he just waited until dark to move...how often do you see opossums in broad daylight? It was a very interesting experience, but needless to say, I'm a little jumpy when I'm in the garage now!

Plenty to post about!!

2006-10-25T08:19:00.000-05:00

Do me a favor...fight the urge to look at the picture until you've read all the story leading up to it! You'll be glad you waited! You wouldn't want to ruin the excitement!!!

Well, as you've all noticed, I haven't been at a loss lately when it comes to posting. Thanks to my mischievous son, I had a good story to tell yesterday. Well, thanks to God's wonderful creatures, I have a whopper of a story to tell this morning.

I was going out the garage to get something out of the car this morning. When I opened the door, I immediately noticed something was not quite right. Let me start by saying we have lots of random things stored in our garage...First of all, (and this isn't too random) Jarrod keeps a pair of old tennis shoes on the back step that he mows in. The first thing I noticed was that one of them was lying on the ground, nearly under my car. Then, I noticed that Macy's beach chair was lying flat on the ground (it's usually standing up against the wall). Thirdly, we keep our recycle "stuff" beside the back door...there was a box that had been scratched and chewed on. So...obviously, we had an intruder. I was thinking it was probably a cat. Then, I glance over to the other side of the garage...where there ARE lots of random things. I had a paper grocery sack full of baby shower invitations (to explain...a lady that I go to church with used to restock cards and she gave them to me because I'm in charge of the baby showers at church. I cleaned out the trunk of the car and just sat them in the garage against the wall). OK...this paper grocery sack was shredded. There was also a plastic Hibbitt bag with a shoe box inside it...yes, more randomness. This sack was also torn up. So, I'm thinking..."OK...something is going to jump at me any minute. I'll just open the garage door and watch whatever it is go running out to his freedom!" Well, nothing ran out. So, I tiptoed over to the shredded sack to see what I could find. Any guesses? Well....here you go:

THERE WAS AN OPOSSUM IN MY GARAGE ALL NIGHT!!!!!!! How crazy is it that he found that box, chewed through the bag, through the box, moved a shoe, and made himself a little house. Wild! Jarrod was supposed to be home from the fire station any minute, so I called and told him not to pull all the way into the garage because he had a job to do when he got home! So, he got a shovel and pushed the box all the way outside, and the opossum never budged. I took Macy to school, and when I got home, it was still curled up in the box out in the yard!

Well, there's another interesting day in my life! I don't know if my next post will be quite this exciting! I almost hope it isn't!

Two in One Day

2006-10-24T10:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I just thought I had nothing to post today. Leave it to Brady to give me somthing to post about! Now, let me say, I've had to go back to yesterday's post and look at the sweet picture of his hands...when they WEREN'T getting him into trouble! Oh how quickly he can go from sweet to horrid!

He's nearly 3 years old. He's trustworthy most of the time. I shouldn't have to stop everything I'm doing around the house to babysit him. At least I didn't think I should. I was going about my business this morning...checking email, getting ready to do laundry, cleaning up the kitchen a little...etc. I got ready to go back to the back of the house to gather up some laundry, and he came walking toward me from his room. Something didn't look quite right about him, but I thought it was the way the light was reflecting on his face. Then, I realized that his nose what kind of white...and so were his clothes. Then, I looked to my left, and here is what I found:

That would be Baby Gold Bond Medicated Powder! I don't know what's different about it than regular baby powder, but it doesn't clean up quite as easily. It "bonds" a little more! Sure, I know you're looking at this picture and laughing, and that's OK...it is a little funnier now than it was several minutes ago. Hopefully he won't give me anything else to post about before this day is over! Luckily, this is Tuesday, which around my house is referred to as "Nana night" (my mother-in-law gets the kids after school and keeps them until bedtime). Tuesday is quickly becoming my favorite day of the week!!!

My Babies

2006-10-24T09:16:00.000-05:00

This is just me being a proud mommy. I don't really have anything to post today, I just love this picture of my kiddos and wanted to share it with anyone who might be looking! I'm so blessed that they are so loving most all the time. We don't really have trouble (yet) with them fighting. Maybe we won't! My brother and I never fought much at all. I pray that they continue this loving relationship!! Have a good day!

Good Times!

2006-10-23T13:08:00.000-05:00

I would like to start this post by saying that I'm quite certain that blogger...maybe even computers in general...are from the Devil. This is the second time I've tried to post this. The first time, I got it all typed and ready, with pictures and everything, and clicked "publish post," and it disappeared! I LOVE when that happens. Let's try again.

Whenever Brady is acting like a real stinker, I just need to look at this picture! He climbed up in my lap yesterday and went to sleep. I couldn't resist having Jarrod take a picture of our hands. I cherish the times he'll actually get in my lap and be still for a few minutes!

We had a great weekend. Friday was mom's birthday. Me, Jarrod, and the kids celebrated with mom and dad Friday night at Red Lobster. My sister-in-law (Lisa) had called me Thursday to see if I thought we could try to work out a surprise breakfast for her at Cracker Barrel on Sat. Ethan (my brother, in case you happen to be reading this and don't really know my family history) had been in San Diego on business and wasn't getting in until late Friday night. Long story short, we were able to work it out to meet up for breakfast after Macy's soccer game Sat. morning (in which she scored her first goal...YEA). Mom was totally surprised! The look on her face was priceless. So, we had a fun weekend. Here's a picture of my nephew, Sam, that I took at breakfast. This is him being "Solemn Sam."

Well, we were thrown a curve ball during our re-potty training last week. Brady got a little fever virus that kind of messed us up. We're going to try it again this week! Hopefully, he'll cooperate and I won't lose my temper too many times. Have a great Monday!!

Who's bright idea was this, anyway????

2006-10-17T10:07:00.000-05:00

This is a message for the person that decided it would be a GOOD idea to invent make-up! Oh how you've destroyed the lives of us women! Sure, it makes us look better, but at what price? Having to roll out of bed that much earlier in the morning? Who ENJOYS putting make-up on, I ask you!!??

Wouldn't we all have been better off never knowing how make-up can improve our looks? If it had never been invented, we wouldn't know the difference. We wouldn't have to worry about going out of the house without our make-up on, because NO ONE would be wearing it! We could go to Wal-Mart without worrying that we would bump into someone we know that would see us WITHOUT OUR MAKE-UP! Guess what, they wouldn't be wearing any either!

So, thanks a lot Mr. or Mrs. make-up inventor! I for one do not appreciate your "genius!"

Little Devil!

2006-10-16T12:59:00.000-05:00

I know, I know...he doesn't LOOK like a little devil! He might look like an abused child (the bruise between his eyes and the chapped spot below his bottom lip), but not little devil! Well, I'm here to tell you... HE'S GOT YOU ALL FOOLED!!! I'm kidding...it's not that bad, most of the time! He is mama's boy, and I don't know what I ever did without him (except maybe stayed a little more sane). He wears me out! This post is soley to solicit your thoughts and prayers! As a lot of you know, he decided to UN-potty train. It's been SO frustrating! I'm not talking about a little regression just as he was starting to figure it out....he just QUIT doing what he KNEW he was supposed to do. He was wearing underwear everywhere...out to eat, Wal-Mart, church, etc. I'm not even sure when it started happening, but somewhere along the way, he ended up back in pull-ups full-time. I blame my own laziness for part of it. I should've not given back in to the stupid pull-ups, but isn't there a time when you just have to make it easier on yourself? Who has time to clean up pee all day??

I am posting this to let you all know that tomorrow, we'll be starting over. Bringing out the training pants and going "potty" every 20 minutes. I HATE it, and we will BOTH need lots of prayers and encouragement! He'll be 3 in Dec., and we WILL have this down by then. It's costing me too much to keep buying the blame pull-ups. Plus, I'll probably be putting him in a mom's day out program a couple of days a week when he turns three, and I'd like for him to be in the "potty trained class!"

I'll take all the encouragement you're willing to offer...along with any advice from those of you that have potty trained a knot-headed little boy!

There WILL Be More...

2006-10-09T21:51:00.000-05:00

If I wasn't so tired, I'd post more about ZOE...it will be coming in later posts. For now, I wanted to share lyrics to this awesome song that was sung at the late night worship session on Friday night. I had heard it before, and I was so glad to be reminded of it.

BROKEN THINGS

Julie Miller

You can have my heart

Though it isn't new

It's been used and broken

And only comes in blue

It's been down a long road

And it got dirty on the way

If I give it to You will You make it clean

And wash the shame away

You can have my heart

If You don't mind broken things

You can have my life if You don't mind these tears

Well I heard that You make old things new

So I give these pieces all to You

If You want it You can have my heart

So beyond repair

Nothing I could do

I tried to fix it myself

But it was only worse when I got through

Then You walked into my darkness

And You speak words so sweet

And You hold me like a child

Till my frozen tears fall at Your feet

My Boys

2006-10-02T09:00:00.000-05:00

This made me laugh out loud! When I got out of the shower this morning, this is what I found in my bed...

How sweet is this? They are both truly asleep. Jarrod didn't even know that I took the pictures! Happy Monday...have a great week!

I Hate Blogger!!

2006-09-28T10:47:00.000-05:00

So, let me start by saying that I spent a good 30 minutes on the computer this morning getting this post together. When I was trying to post my pictures, of course, blogger wouldn't let me. So, I thought I'd save it as a draft and come back later and try again to post the pics. Well, when I clicked the "save as draft" button, it popped up a big error message and I lost the ENTIRE POST! UGH!! So...here goes AGAIN! I've already got the pics posted...I did that FIRST, so maybe I won't have any trouble this time. I just hope I can remember what all I had to say earlier!

This post is all about my kids, so if you're sick of hearing about them, you better stop reading now! I just wanted to talk about each of them a little. Sure, they drive me nuts a lot of the time, but when they're not driving me nuts, they're making me laugh. They are such a joy, and I'm so lucky to be blessed with 2 funny, smart, loving, imaginative, creative, wonderful, and happy kids (I could list more adjectives, but I could've already overdone it!).

Let's talk about my first born. She is a live wire! What a funny girl, when she's not being a complete smarty pants! Boy, are the teenage years going to be fun!! Yikes! I am enjoying the relationship that we've already built in 5 short years. I pray daily that we will continue to have a good mother/daughter relationship. The thing that I'm really enjoying about her right now is watching her learn. She has always been eager to learn...enjoying mostly educational toys, workbooks, etc... Watching her learning to spell is fun! She's REALLY into spelling right now. She hasn't got it all figured out just yet, but she's trying so hard! For example, she wants to spell everything...even in conversation. She'll ask me, "M-o-m-m-y, when is s-o-c-c-e-r practice?" HA! Also, the worksheets that she's brining home from school bring a smile to my face! There are blanks underneath different pictures. In the blank, she is supposed to write the letter that the picture starts with. Well, she's taken it upon herself to write the word. Here are a few examples: appel (apple), trky (turkey), helukoptr (helicopter), and popskel (popsicle). I love it! The neat thing is, I think I would know what she was spelling even if I didn't see the picture with it. What fun to see their minds grow!!
Now....Brady! This child is gonna be the death of me! He is full of energy and his mouth never stops running! You never know what's going to come out of his mouth, and that scares me... especially after our trip to Wal-Mart on Monday. I don't really know if I need to actually spell this out, but I'll just say that he has recently discovered the major difference between boys and girls, and he thinks that he should explain it to everyone. Now, I never know when he is going to feel this need, so I can't ever get prepared for it!! He informed the cashier at Wal-Mart that he has a (insert proper word for male genitalia here). I guess he thought that she might not know. Well, I tried not to just get on to him and cover his mouth and make a big deal about it. She laughed and told a story about her own son. Well, when we were leaving, I told Brady that he didn't have to tell people that because they already knew. To this, he calmly and innocently responded, "Oh." A few days earlier, he had taken it upon himself to inform my mother that she "didn't have a (insert above mentioned word)." Great.
I guess my reason for this post was to remind me what a joy they are! Although there are days that I feel like I'm ready to give them away, I can't imagine what I ever did for entertainment before they came along!!! Have a great day!

Our latest family drama!

2006-09-22T12:01:00.000-05:00

Two days in a row...can you believe it?? I thought that since blogger was finally letting me post pictures, I would share the one I mentioned in my post from yesterday. Pretty sweet.

Well, I thought I'd share the latest excitement from around the Wallace household. Wednesday afternoon, it was such a nice day, the kids wanted to go into the back yard and play after school. I sent them out, but I was working on some things in the house. I usually don't stay out there with them. We have a swing set and a fenced in back yard. I check in on them periodically while they are out. Well, I was headed out to check on them, and I heard Macy crying. She really was mostly whining. She didn't sound like she was terribly hurt. She said that she had been swinging too high and fallen out and hurt her arm. Well, I didn't think it was broken, because she could bend it and squeeze my fingers, etc...So, she kept whining about it, but we went on to church and she seemed fine. Yesterday, she said it felt better, but she really wouldn't use it much (it's her right arm, too) and was holding it kind of up at an angle. Finally, I decided that for my peace of mind, I was going to need to take her to have it x-rayed. I took her on to school this morning (because I couldn't call the doctor's office until 8 to see if they could even see her). Plus, she needed to get her school pictures remade. They said they could see her at 9:30. So, I went back and got her...blah, blah, blah!! All this to say, it's not broken, it's just badly sprained, so she's got to wear a sling at least through the weekend and take Advil every 6 hours. So, I didn't take her back to school. Since it's her right arm, she can't do anything. We're just going to take it easy the rest of the day!!

HELLOOOOOO!

2006-09-21T08:17:00.000-05:00

Well, since all two of my readers have been after me to post something new, here goes! I guess I'll just update you all on the "goings-on" in the Wallace household. There are really 2 main reasons that I haven't posted lately. 1. I haven't made the time, and 2. I haven't had a topic. So here goes:

Over the last several weeks, we've been busy with school and soccer mostly. Macy is loving school and I'm thrilled for her. I was able to go up there and help a few weeks ago, and it was great. The kids love to have other adults in there. She's really got a very sweet class. I got there on that Friday morning, and they were all very happy to see me (although I only knew a couple of them, you would think they'd known me forever). It turned out that it was a good day for me to be there, because I got to be a part of several fun things. They had been talking about bears, so that day, they all brought their favorite teddy bear and we had a teddy bear parade around the school. Also, they had been having show and tell that week, and it just so happened that it was Macy's day on Friday, so I got to be there for that (she took the picture that they took in the castle with Cinderella at Disney World). But probably the most surprising part of the day came fairly early in my visit. Most of you know that Macy's teacher is our preacher's wife, so we already had a relationship when school started. I guess that's why she felt she could do this to me:

It's about 9:30 or so, and the kids are in PE. Summer asked me how long I was planning to stay. Well, most of the time, they just hope that the helper can stay until at least 11:30 or so, but if you can stay longer, they appreciate that too. Since Jarrod was off that day, and I didn't have to make any kind of arrangements for Brady, I told her I could stay all day if she needed me. She proceeded to tell me that she would LOVE that because she was hoping that she could leave school early to go to Georgia and help her daughter pick out her wedding dress. SO...she left at 1:00! Yes, that's right! School isn't out until 2:50. People, let me tell you, I do NOT have the personality that one needs to be a kindergarten teacher. I'm not sweet. I'm sure you are all shocked about that! HAHA Seriously, the two kindergarten teachers that those kids are used to are STICKY SWEET and can put up with all kinds of crap! I'm NOT one of those people. It went fine, though. I probably wouldn't have agreed to do it if there had been a lot of "classroom" things left to do, but all that was left was recess, snack, and rest time. Summer got their snacks ready while we were at recess, so all we had to do was come in and wash up. Then, rest time was a movie in the other kindergarten classroom. But, while they were in there, I was printing out/copying the newsletter, getting all their papers stuffed in their folders, putting check marks in their folders, and making sure that all their teddy bears were with their things. I was tired and was reminded why I didn't become a teacher! I REALLY did enjoy it, though! And, I must not have been horrible, because the next week, when I went up there to eat lunch with Macy, all the kids were very happy to see me! I am so glad that Macy wants me there...I will cherish those times, because it will soon be to the point where she wants me to drop her off a mile from school!!

Also, over the last few weeks, we've been to Tuscaloosa a couple of times. Jarrod's sister and her family live there now, and his parents have season tickets to the games, so we went two weekends in a row to the first couple of home games. It was fun. Jarrod and his brother-in-law went to the game, and me, Etta, and the kids hung out at the house. It was nice. It's so great that they just live 2 1/2 hours away now. This is the closest they've lived in their 5 year marriage. We're going back again this weekend after Macy's soccer game for Justin Michael's first birthday! Time flies!!

Also, I have been very busy in my house. I haven't taken the time to do much on the computer at ALL lately because I've desperately been trying to "de-clutter" this house. I can't believe how bad it had gotten. I finally decided enough was enough and flew into it like a mad woman. It's done! I have one room left that is going to be a challenge, and it's the office. I'll get to it soon. I've got one more load of laundry to do, and I'll be done. It's so nice to be able to spend time sitting here typing this and not feel guilty because I should be working in the house!!

OK...I've come to the end of this novel. I will be surprised if anyone even makes it to this point in the blog! All is well with the Wallace's. The kids are doing good and love each other so much. I'm so lucky that (so far) they don't fight much, but they love on each other a lot. I couldn't help but snap a picture of Macy reading to Brady last night, but wouldn't you know, blogger won't let me post it. Maybe next time. Hope you all have a great day, and I'll try not to wait so long about posting my ramblings next time!

Something to blog about!

2006-08-30T15:47:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been a little while since I've blogged, and part of the reason is that I really couldn't think of anything to say! Then I had a thought. I know there are several of you that read my blog that have fond memories of the house on Patsy Drive. Well, you know that mom and dad built a house and are no longer on Patsy Drive. I have a lot of fun memories there, and a lot of them involve some of you. Then, I thought that some of you might like to see the new Jackson abode...so here are a couple of pictures. Excuse the fact that the one of the pool is crooked...I was standing at a funny angle trying to get the fountain in the background!

While I've got so many fond memories on Patsy Drive, I have made new ones on Plantation Springs Drive, as well! This will be the house that my children remember the most. Mom and dad had some family and friends over for my 30th birthday, several friends and I have spent time together in the pool...the list goes on. I'm sure there will be many more as the years fly by!! (and by the way...I'm sure mom wouldn't mind me sharing pics of the inside for those of you that might like to see them...that would give me another topic to post about!)

Update

2006-08-20T20:20:00.000-05:00

Well, it's hard to believe that we're about to start our third week of school, and I haven't reported anything! Things are going great. Macy is loving school and making lots of new friends. Her teacher tells me that she is behaving, so that's also great news. Her favorite things are PE and chapel. I hope that she continues to be excited about learning. So far, she has told me the past 2 weekends that she didn't want to go back to school (but I could read her mind, and what she really meant was, "I don't want to get up before 7:00!") But, once Monday comes, she's always excited. Trust me, I don't like getting up at 6:30 everyday either, but you do what you gotta do! It's been good for me too. I started going back to the Y. I drop her off at school and go straight there. I even lost 3 pounds last week! Yippie! Thanks to those of you who have asked about Macy over the last couple of weeks!

I have to post a few pictures from a spur of the moment trip me and the kids took yesterday with Mimi and Papa (mom and dad). Ethan had just gotten home Friday night from a 3 week training session in Chicago, so we wanted to see him and Sam, of course! That baby is a doll...and he is really looking like his cousin Brady (who is also a doll, I might add)! Even Ethan and Lisa say that they can see more of Brady in him everyday!

He LOVES when his Mimi swings him...mostly, he just LOVES his Mimi!!

Gotta start 'em early! He likes playing the guitar with Papa!

Sam, Ethan, Brady, Mimi, and Macy after dinner.

There was one more picture I was going to share...but surprise, surprise...blogger isn't cooperating. Then, I decided it's better to save it for another post anyway! It'll give me another topic to blog about and maybe it won't be another 3 weeks before I blog again!

Gotta go get the school girl (and her tired old mom) in the bed!!

Finally!!

2006-08-09T16:24:00.000-05:00

Here are the pics that I tried to post earlier:

Morning of the first day of school!

Don't forget the backpack!

Here she is in her classroom.

Check out Elliot's great taste in hats (not to mention the HUGE wad of gum)!!

I think he REALLY enjoyed being home!!

Hard to Believe!!

2006-08-09T09:26:00.000-05:00

Well, it's official! Macy is in kindergarten! I can't believe it. She was so happy and excited. It just blows my mind how quickly time flies. It is so hard to grasp the fact that she is growing up so fast! She's having a great week so far. Most of you know that she's got a wonderful teacher (our preacher's wife) and we couldn't be happier. Brady misses her, but he does OK. It is easier on me when she's here because she helps keep him entertained, but they are so rowdy together that it's nice to have the break. The only thing is, he wants me to be right there with him a lot of the time and I've got things I'm trying to get done while I've only got one child in the house! (This is where I would insert a couple of pictures if blogger would let me...I'll post them later. A lot of you have already seen them.)

NOW...if I may say...LAST NIGHT WAS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For those of you who don't know, or might have just forgotten, me and several girlfriends went to Birmingham to see the AMERICAN IDOLS! WOO HOO!! Let me just give a little "shout out" to Trina, Bridgett, Amy B, Scarlett, Gena, Shannan, and Cortney! Love you girls! It was a blast! The concert was great!! Bear in mind that I said it was in BIRMINGHAM...Taylor's home town! One word: PANDIMONIUM!!! It was crazy! If you think that boy was a dancing fool on TV, you should've seen him last night! HOLY COW! It was a great concert, but also a great time to be with special girlfriends. A time spent talking, sharing, and singing. What a blessing!

I loved that the idols all seemed genuinely happy to be in Taylor's home town. Taylor was noticeably blown away by the response. He seems so sincere and humble. It was really neat to be a part of it. I found a couple of pictures that I would like to share, but blogger doesn't want me to share them. I will be trying again later. I hope to have better luck then! Amy B took several at the show...check out her blog later, I'm sure there will be plenty posted! There is a link on the right...

Elliot is AWESOME, btw! Someone else that REALLY rocked was Lisa Tucker. She was great on the show, but she did her thing last night, for sure! Speaking of "doing their thing"...two words: Chris Daughtry! Hubba, hubba! HAHAHA (did I actually just type those words?) Paris morphed into Beyonce for a couple of minutes! Everyone did great...everyone except for Pickler. I don't know what was going on with her. I'm thinking that she might've even been a little under the weather. She didn't sound very good, and she wasn't acting as perky as I've always seen her on TV. Oh well...everyone has an "off" night!

Alrighty, that's it for now. I need to get some things done around here, and I really need to take a nap this afternoon!

My Girls

2006-08-03T12:29:00.000-05:00

Well, I have posted a "girlfriends" post before, but I wanted to share another couple of quotes that one of "my girls" sent in a recent email. I trust that we all know the joy and importance of having strong relationships with other women, and I'm SO blessed to have a circle of friends that are so special to me. These quotes really made me appreciate those friendships.

"What matters is that you have a small chorus of female voices to speak into
your life. A group of women who know that your life and each of theirs
matters. A group of women who are invested in helping you and every other
member make a difference."

" A band of sisters who carry deep values and who watch over one another in
love, is stronger than any woman on her own."

Thank you, God, for bringing such special, strong women into my life!!

How Exciting!!!

2006-08-02T09:06:00.000-05:00

I thought these two pictures were so great and really summed up the excitement at the ballpark last night! If you haven't heard, Josh Willingham won the ballgame for the Marlins last night in the bottom of the 9th inning! Way to go Josh! Check out these pictures:

The Florida Marlins wait at home plate for Josh Willingham after he hit a walk-off two-run game-winning home run against New York Mets pitcher Billy Wagner in the bottom of the ninth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2006, in Miami. The Marlins won, 6-5.

Florida Marlins Josh Willingham (14) is greeted at home plate by teammates Miguel Cabrera, left, and Alfredo Amezaga, right, after hitting a walk-off two-run game-winning home run against New York Mets pitcher Billy Wagner in the bottom of the ninth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2006, in Miami. The Marlins won, 6-5.

God has blessed Josh with such a talent and such a down to earth, humble attitude. I'm convinced that he has had such success because of the way God has equipped him to handle it. Keep up the good work, Josh! We look forward to having you home soon!!

It's Over!!

2006-07-28T15:37:00.000-05:00

Well...it's done! One of the places I probably dislike most in this world, and I've managed to go there, get it over with, and not have to go back for a very long time (if ever)!! I told you all in a previous post that Macy did so great getting her shots, so this was her reward. It really wasn't too bad. We got there right at 11:00 and there was only 1 church group there! Luckily, they were older than Macy and Brady, so they were playing some of the games and things that my kids didn't care much about. The main time I started to get a little restless was standing in line behind a million pokey kids waiting to cash in the tickets. You know, they have little "counters" now, so all you do is feed it your tickets and it spits out a receipt telling how many you had, then you take it and collect your trash, I mean prize. So, they were selling cotton candy for $1.99. We only had 84 tickets, and all we could get for that was junk. What Macy really wanted was the cotton candy, so rather than stand in line behind all the same kids that had been in front of me at the ticket counter, I just pretended like I used the tickets to get the cotton candy! Pretty clever, huh?! Then, everyone was happy! The kids were really great...they didn't whine when I said, "Here is your cup of tokens and that's all you're getting." They didn't whine when I said, "When I say it's time to go, I don't want to hear any complaints." And they didn't even whine when I decided that it was time to go because it was starting to smell like dirty, sweaty children!!

So, now on to one of my more favorite places to go and somewhere that I don't get to go very often at ALL...George's. For those of you that don't know, it's a steakhouse, and it's YUMMY. My in-laws are taking me for my birthday (since we left for the beach the day after my birthday, this is really the first real chance we've had to go out). I'm looking forward to a nice quiet dinner without electronic mice, dogs, and gorillas singing to me and a bunch of kids running around yelling and emitting their germs all over everything! Have a great weekend!

Determined!

2006-07-26T10:54:00.000-05:00

I've never posted twice in one day, but I've also never been so determined to get my pictures posted! So, I have decided that you all WILL look at every picture that I wanted to post on this crazy blog!! I just thought I'd give it a whirl one more time and see if I could get the last one on here, and it finally worked! This pictures is blurry, but I love it SO much! I guarantee you that Brady will hate it one day! OK...I'll spare you all anymore pics from the beach! Hope you all have a great Wednesday!!!

A Couple More

2006-07-26T08:50:00.000-05:00

I don't know if I'm the only one, but I've been having all sorts of trouble posting pictures the past couple of days. Yesterday, I was going to try to post a few more pics, and it wouldn't let me. Today, it will only let me put two. I realize that I told you in my last post that I had 2 more to share. Well, I realized it is really three...but since it'll only let me post 2, I'll save the third for another time!!

This one really captures Brady's flamboyant personality!

This one was just too sweet not to share!

I thought I would brag on my sweet Macy. She is SO excited about starting kindergarten in a couple of weeks that she's been asking to get her shots! Can you imagine?? Anyway, Monday was the big day. She was ok all morning...she said she was a little nervous, but she never really got "freaked out." I had heard horror stories from friends and family about how their kids behaved when they took them to get shots...just ask my mom about the experience she had when she took my brother! YIKES! Anyway, I was a little worried that she might freak when we got there, but she was great! I couldn't believe how well she did. The funny thing is, after it was over, she said, "Next time, I will NOT be asking to get my shots!" Now, I know some of you reading this are thinking, "Oh shut up! My child was awful, blah, blah, blah!" Well, to those people, let me remind you...I still have another child that will have to have his shots in a few years. I have a feeling that I've probably got it coming to me! He'll be the one I have to chase around the room and then me and 4 nurses will have to hold him down! I'm going to start praying now that it doesn't happen like that! What a nightmare!

Look Out!!

2006-07-24T21:43:00.000-05:00

Well...here it is! I'm about to flood you with pictures of our trip to the beach. We had a great trip. It was hot, but is there anywhere in the US that ISN'T hot right now?? The kids had a great time and we took so many sweet pictures of them that I can't help but share!! We're glad to be back with our friends, family, and church family, but it's always sad to leave the beach!!

A day at the beach

Beating the heat

Enjoying the view

Playing in the sand

Fun in the ocean

My beautiful beach babies

How sweet it this??

Well, there are two more that I really wanted to post, but it won't let me. Maybe I've met my quota. Don't think for a second that I won't make you look at them...they will come in a later post. Thanks for letting me share some pictures with you.

A Big Day

2006-07-14T07:55:00.000-05:00

Well...here it is. My 30th birthday. I guess that it's not a huge deal! Some people really struggle with it, but so far, I don't think I'm going to be one of those people. It is just a strange feeling...thirty. It's NOT old....no matter what we used to think. It just seems like you are really a grown up when someone asks how old you are and you say, "thirty." Lucky for me, I'm going to be too busy to dwell on it anyway.

We leave at about 5:00 in the morning to go to Gulf Shores. I cannot wait, but I have got SO much to do to get ready. I wasn't really able to get a whole lot done to get ready for the trip yesterday, because I felt like all I was doing was playing referee to my kids. They were nuts yesterday! For example, Macy comes to me crying because Brady has been hitting her over the head with a roll of wrapping paper! Good grief!

Last night was really nice. Mom and dad took the family to Olive Garden for my birthday dinner (side note: if you like mushrooms, you really must try the Ravioli di Portabello...YUM). It was actually quite funny, because the main reason we went there was because mom and dad had a gift card that was going to pay for most of the meal. Well, they lost our ticket in the kitchen, and we had been there well over an hour when we finally got our food, so it was on the house! Lucky for Al and Lou!! Then, we went back over to mom and dad's for cake and ice cream. I knew my in-laws were going to be there, but I was quite surprised that my accountability group showed up! It was fun. I got some nice gifts...money, jewelry, and the husband did great by getting me a massage and manicure from the new spa! Yeah! I must include a picture of the gift from mom and dad. I was SO happy!! I've been wanting this for probably 3 years or more:

I was very excited. Thanks mom and dad...what's a special gift for a special day! Thanks also to those of you that were there. It was so fun.

Well, I really must go. I'm sure you won't be hearing from me for over a week since we'll be at the beach. I don't think I'll have internet access, so until next time...

Birthday Girl!

2006-07-08T15:30:00.000-05:00

Wow...two days in a row! I must really have something to say. Not really, I just wanted to share a little more about Macy's birthday. I have a few pictures from her party to post, and a picture of her playing with her early gift from Nana and Pawpaw (the in-laws). She is SO into the Food Network (she'd rather watch that than Nick Jr.) that they couldn't have picked a more perfect gift for her. She had a great time at her party...

More To Come

2006-07-07T21:12:00.000-05:00

Just so you know, this will be the first post about Macy's birthday. Her actual birthday is Sunday, but her party is tomorrow. As many of you know, I started making her cakes from day one...as I sit here, I'm thinking about posting pictures of them all...and I just might. Her first year was easy...it was just a small heart.

Second year, Cinderella.

Third year, Dora, although because of her obviously very dark skin, my brother affectionately named her Tomeka the Explorer!!

Fourth year, a butterfly...probably about my faviorite so far.

And...coming soon to her fifth birthday party...is the least detailed, but no less time consuming.....SOCCER BALL!
I've let her pick out her cakes every year, and this year, after UPWARD soccer, she was very hung up on the soccer ball. She loves it, and it thrills me that she seems so appreciative of the hard work. It melted my heart on her second birthday (my first attempt at a birthday cake, and I had to do Cinderella) when someone asked her what her favorite part of her party was...and this was AFTER she had opened all her gifts, and she still said, "My cake." That made the arthritis in my hands worth it! I know that we'll have more pictures to post from the party tomorrow, so just get ready! Have a great weekend.

What The...?

2006-07-06T15:31:00.000-05:00

OK, I really thought that I wouldn't be posting any more about my wrist, but here goes! I had to go back to the doctor today for a follow up. It's been six weeks. It is doing really well, still a little sore, but over all, better than before the surgery. So, when I went 2 weeks after surgery, he told me that he wanted me to be massaging the scar to keep it from fusing into place. I've been doing that...at least once a day. So, when I get to the office today, I didn't really know what to expect. I thought he might comment about the fact that there still seemed to be a little swelling around the scar, but that was about all I could imagine. So, much to my surprise, and dismay, he commented that the center of the scar was a little "stuck." He said, "Now, that's not a huge deal, you could live with it, but I'd like for it to be perfect, wouldn't you?" I said, "Yes, that would be nice." So, he continues by telling me that if I would let him give me a cortisone shot IN MY SCAR that it would loosen it up. YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!! I gotta tell you people, I've had this shot twice before, and it isn't pleasant. Now, I've had the stinking surgery, and the last thing I expected was to ever have to have another one of those shots. Well, I can handle it one more time, I guess. So, the nurse comes in and preps me for the shot, the doctor comes in and sprays it with the very cold "numbing" liquid, and proceeds to shoot... it was hellish! Can I say that?? Much worse than ANY of the others that I've ever had. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, he takes the needle out and says, "I'm going to put one in the other side now!" SO, two doses in two areas of my scar. But it's over, and I didn't even cry. He hand me my paperwork and tells me he'll see me in a month. He wants me to really give the 'ol scar a work out now...massaging it like CRAZY so that it will loosen up and not fuse. Fine...

Fast forward one minute. I take my paperwork out to the check out desk ready to hand it to the receptionist to file and make me another appointment. There were 3 ladies up there and they were all busy. I stood there waiting. One lady said, "I'll be right with you." Ok, that's fine, but I'm feeling a little nauseated. No big deal, it'll pass. Wait a minute, it is hot as blazes in here... and why am I feeling like there's someone standing on my chest? You know what, I think I'll have a seat! So, as I'm backing up about to take seat in the chair against the wall, the lady said, "I can help you now." I said, "You know, I think I need to sit down for a second." She looked really concerned and said, "Do I need to get you a nurse?" Nah, I'm fine, I thought as I continued to fan. Meanwhile, she proceeded to go get a nurse (whom I happen to go to church with). She took one look at me and went to get me a cold rag. They were all talking about how pale I was. After I sat there a minute, she asked me if I felt like walking back to a room where I could lie down...so I did. It was all SO strange. She said that sometimes those shots can do that to a person, but I thought it was weird that it was the third time I'd had the shot and it had never bothered me before. It would've almost been funny if it wasn't so embarrassing! So, there's my fun story for the day! Strange, strange happenings. I still haven't figured it out. I'm not one to have reactions like that to anything, usually. I passed out once a long time ago from getting too hot, but it wasn't quite the same. That time, my hearing went, and then my sight, and boom...I was slumped against a wall. This was strange. All I knew was that I better sit down. I thought, "Either I'm about to pass out or I'm having a heart attack." Luckily, it wasn't the latter! The whole ordeal only lasted about 10 minutes or a little more...I'm not one to let people to make a big fuss over me...so I agreed to lay down just long enough to please the nurses! All is well....my wrist bled like nobody's business! I had to change to band-aid as soon as I got home. Gross, huh? SO, if you see me, please remind me to be "manipulating my scar" (as the doctor so eloquently put it!!).

Ready??

2006-07-03T22:15:00.000-05:00

Well, it's time to post some more lyrics! Yes, Brad, this time, they're yours! I can't get this song out of my head. I wish you could all hear it...it's quite a catchy tune, and the words are awesome! If I haven't already shared it with you, let me know and I'll play it for you (assuming you don't mind, Brad). A friend of mine wrote this song, and I think that it is such an amazing sentiment. I'm ashamed to say that the the first verse seems to express where I seem to be in my life right now! I pray that I can get past that point and move on to being READY!!! Thanks for sharing, Brad! You've challenged me to be fearless and bold for the sake of His kingdom!

I’ve made excuses, time after time.
I’ve been a fool and believed the lies.
I’ve straddled the fence with half-hearted faith
I’ve taken advantage of Your grace.
I’ve gone down a thousand dead end roads
But I’ve turned around and I’m gonna follow.

I’ve been holdin’ back, I’ve been to afraid, Lord
But I’m ready now
You’ve opened my eyes
I’m layin it down, Lord,
I’m ready now
I’m ready now

And now I surrender, I’m finally done
Fighting the battles You’ve already won
I wanna be fearless, I wanna be bold
Led by Your Spirit wherever I go
And every step in this race I run
For the sake of Your kingdom,
Let Your will be done

I’ve been holdin’ back, I’ve been to afraid, Lord
But I’m ready now
You’ve opened my eyes
I’m layin it down, Lord,
I’m ready now
I’m ready now

Why Is It??

2006-07-01T20:06:00.000-05:00

I thought it was about time to share a recent picture of the kiddos! Unfortunately, sometimes when I look at these sweet kids, I wonder why it is that we pass along the traits about ourselves that we like the least?!? I've noticed that about myself...the traits that I didn't want to get from my parents seem to be the the things I notice about myself! You would think that I would really strive to stop that cycle! Don't get me wrong, my parents are wonderful, godly people, and there aren't any deep, dark things that went on in my childhood that I'm trying not to allow to happen in my house. It's just things like my temper...I don't like that I have a quick, bad temper...and I'm seeing signs of that in my nearly 5 year old daughter. I don't like that I can be a real smarty pants (I think you all know that I'm being polite by saying "smarty pants") and my kids sound as hateful as I do sometimes. I don't like that I yell at times, and I'm seeing that in my children! Those are the things that I didn't want to inherit, and now, I've got 'em...and if I don't really watch out, my kids are going to have them too! I know that there are good qualities about me, too, but I fear that the things that will leave the biggest impressions on my children are the yucky ones! Any advice? Wow...confession is good for the soul, I guess. I'm really hoping that some of you can give some advice, or at least say that you've been down this road.

We're having a great summer...we're spoiled to the grandparent's pools. We've got a busy rest of the summer, and then it'll be time for school to start before we know it! A week from today is Macy's birthday party (her actual birthday is Sunday, 7/9). I am sure I'll post some pics from that. Then, we have VBS at church the 10th-12th. My birthday is on the 14th, and we leave on the 15th for the beach (and I KNOW I'll be posting pics from that)!! I think school starts on August 7th! And, if you haven't already heard, I'll be going to see the American Idol Tour in Birmingham on Aug. 8!!!! WooHoo! I just mainly wanted to fill you in on my upcoming schedule so you'll know why I might not be posting quite as regularly!! I hope you are all having a fantastic summer.

It's Past Time

2006-06-22T16:03:00.000-05:00

Well, here I am, finally...I know that all TWO of my readers are glad to see that I am finally posting something else. I haven't really taken the time to post lately because I haven't felt like there was anything worth sharing. Then, a couple of days ago, I heard something that I think is certainly worth sharing!!

My CD player in my car has been broken for a while now. I HATE that!! I am so spoiled to having a CD player, as I'm sure most of us are. Anyway, I finally got a new one. I had bought a CD around the time the player messed up, and I really hadn't had the opportunity to listen to it since. So, I popped it in a couple of days ago, and this song just blew me away. It's Awaken by Natalie Grant. The first verse sounds so much like where I am, and the chorus and following verses sound like where I want to be!!

SOMETIMES I FEEL LIKE I'M JUST EXISTING
I'M NOT REALLY LIVING
I'M ONLY WATCHING THE TIME SLIP AWAY
I'VE FORGOTTEN WHO I AM IN YOU
I'M NOT WHO I'M MEANT TO BE
I'M DRIFTING FARTHER AWAY FROM MY DESTINY

AWAKEN MY HEART, AWAKEN MY SOUL
AWAKEN YOUR POWER AND TAKE CONTROL
AWAKEN THE PASSION TO LIVE FOR YOU, LORD
AWAKEN ME

MY SOUL IS LONGING, MY HEART IS SEARCHING
I'M DESPERATE FOR YOU TO MOVE
GIVE ME A HUNGER, PULL ME CLOSER
I'M CRYING OUT TO YOU

AWAKEN MY HEART, AWAKEN MY SOUL
AWAKEN YOUR POWER AND TAKE CONTROL
AWAKEN THE PASSION TO LIVE FOR YOU, LORD

OPEN MY EYES SO I CAN SEE YOUR PRESENCE
SWELLING INSIDE
WAKE ME UP, 'CAUSE I CAN'T LIVE ANOTHER MINUTE
IF I'M NOT SHINING YOUR LIGHT

AWAKEN MY HEART, AWAKEN MY SOUL
AWAKEN THE PASSION IN ME

LORD, AWAKEN ME TO LIVE MY DESTINY
LORD, AWAKEN ME AND SHINE YOUR LIGHT THROUGH ME

Well...That just really spoke to me, so I thought I would share it with you. I don't think there is anything else to say about it...the words are pretty straight forward. Well, I guess I can say one thing about it...WOW!

On My Mind

2006-06-15T09:12:00.000-05:00

I have had this song in my head for a couple of days now. It's a song that the chorus used to sing a long time ago when dad was still the director. I just thought I'd share it with you today as well...

"Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sew love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen."

I know this is something that I need to hear from time to time. There are several things mentioned here that I need to work on. I pray that I live the life that God wants me to live...the life that models Christ for my children and that will win me a home in heaven with Him someday!! Have a blessed day!

Our Day

2006-06-13T09:46:00.000-05:00

Well, eight years ago today, I made Jarrod the happiest man in the world! HA! Yes, today is our 8th anniversary. It seems like a long time, yet it also seems like no time at all when I realize that his parents celebrated their 35th a little over a week ago, and my parents will celebrate their 33rd later this year! This much I know, eight years is plenty of time for me to have been blessed with my two babies. Those are the best gifts anyone could give me!! I am blessed with a husband who is the hardest worker I know. He unselfishly works two jobs so that I can stay home with the kids. He never complains about it...I am the one who gets frustrated because he's never here, then I quickly remind myself that I'm able to be home with the kids because of his sacrifice. Thanks honey! Thanks for being a great husband and wonderful father to our children! I love you and look forward to many more years together!

One Last Update

2006-06-12T15:26:00.000-05:00

Well, here is one last post that is simply to update you all on my wrist. Are you sick of it yet?? I'm mostly posting one last time about it for those of you that I'm not able to see often...family and so on. It's not the prettiest scar, but it'll get better. I took these pics by myself, and it's hard to get a good one, but I guess you get the idea.

There is still some swelling around the incision site, and it is still pretty painful, but I'm able to do more than I was a couple of weeks ago. I pray that as the weeks pass, it will be better than it was before the surgery. It's really going to stink if the surgery doesn't fix the problem!!

Thanks again to those of you that have prayed for my surgery and have kept up with my progress! Have a great day!!

It's Over!

2006-06-11T12:50:00.000-05:00

Well, I know you all really want to see my big mug plastered on here, but this is the only way to make my feelings about the wedding this weekend known:

I'M DONE WITH THE WHOLE THING! It went well. I wasn't as nervous after I ran through a little of it at the rehearsal Friday night. It all went very smoothly. My kindergarten teacher was the director, and she's done TONS of weddings. It was all very organized, and we had discussed precise timing (even going so far as to syncronize our watches). The wedding was scheduled for 6:30, and she wanted the mother of the bride seated at 6:30. So, I started the prelude at about 6:13 and was able to time it exactly to where I could begin the song that the mothers were coming in to at 6:29! It was perfect. People were very complimentary, so I can assume they weren't just trying to make me feel good. One of our elders wives said, "You are the bravest person I know!" That was funny. The bride and her family were happy, and that's all I could've have hoped for. Plus, they made it very worth my while, if you know what I mean!

I think we're going to my parents to try to enjoy some of this good sunshine and swim a little. Have a great day! I know mine will be a little better now that I've got the wedding behind me! Thanks for remembering me and praying about it. I know that was a big help to my nerves.

Update

2006-06-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

Well, my sister-in-law and her family got to town on Wednesday. It was great to see them at church. I thought Macy was going to knock her down when she saw her. My dad commented that he'd never seen Macy move as fast as she did when she saw Etta walk in! They went house hunting in Tuscaloosa yesterday, and it looks as if they've already found a house. I'm happy for them, but I was hoping they'd be here just a little longer. It'll still be a little while longer, even if it all works out. With all the bank stuff, paperwork, inspections, etc...

We had a great day Wednesday for other reasons too. My dear friends, the Crisler's, came to town for the day. We had the best time. We went to mom and dad's and stayed around the pool most of the afternoon. I even have a little souvenir from that day...a sunburn that's killing me. It makes me mad at myself. I haven't had a sunburn in years because I've realized how careful I should be. I just had a moment of poor judgment!! Anyway, they were able to stay and worship with us, and I'm always glad to have them back. I hope they enjoyed it and were uplifted as much as I was!

I got my stitches out yesterday. It wasn't bad. I'm a wimp, and I was worried about it hurting. I'm happy to have them out, but sad because they put some steri-strips on it and told me to keep them on and keep it dry for a few more days! I was looking so forward to being able to jump in the shower without having to go through the routine of putting my waterproof dressing on there! Oh well...this too shall pass! It looks fairly ugly. I know that it still has a way to go, but I don't think it's going to be very subtle. I don't care...it is in a location that isn't very obvious...as a matter of fact, my watch will probably cover it up. Anyway, scars add character, right?? I'll bore you all with another picture in a day or so.

Lastly....I BEG FOR YOUR PRAYERS! You all might think that I'm crazy, but I really would like you to pray for me this weekend. I have to sing at a wedding. Fine. I usually don't get that nervous. I usually have someone singing with me. I usually stand in the back of the auditorium or in the balcony. Not the case. I have to sing BY MYSELF. I have to stand IN THE FRONT. I have NO ACCOMPANIMENT. NONE. No instruments, no soundtracks, nothing. Why, you ask? The church that she has chosen allows no such thing. Anyway, needless to say, I'm nervous, AND my throat seems a little "froggy" today. Great! Oh, and did I mention there are 11 songs on the list? ELEVEN!?!?!?!?!?! Now, I might not have to do them all, but I would be willing to bet that I'll do no less than 9. So, I guess what I'm asking you to pray for is: 1) I don't have a heart attack 2) My voice holds out

Well, that should catch you up on the "goings-on" in the life of the Wallace's this weekend. Hope you're not totally bored! Who knows, you might not have even made it to this paragraph!! Beware, in my next post, I'll let you all know how the wedding went. I guess there is even a chance that some of you might be there! YIKES! Now I really am going to throw up!

On The Road

2006-06-06T16:02:00.000-05:00

Well, what do you know?! I'm posting two days in a row. I just thought I would let you all know that my sister-in-law and her family are now in route to ALABAMA!! I believe that they left North Carolina today and should be arriving in Florence tomorrow. They are going to be living here until they can find a house in Tuscaloosa. They'll be going house-hunting on Thursday. I selfishly hope that they're here for a little while before finding a house! We haven't seen them in such a long time, and Macy and Brady are especially excited about spending time with Justin Michael. Keep them in your prayers as they travel and as they start this new chapter in their lives...out of the Army!

Look at the expression on his face! He's thinking, "Man, mom, I can't wait to get to Alabama!!!"

Catching Up...

2006-06-05T22:41:00.000-05:00

Wow...having wrist surgery can really slow down a persons blogging! Things are getting much better. I'm pretty much down to only having to wear a bandaid...and something waterproof for bathing. I still have 4 stitches, as you can see from the lovely picture, but the swelling has gone down tremendously. I am supposed to get my stitches out on Thursday, which can't come soon enough for me. They are starting to bug me. I have very high hopes that the surgery took care of the problems I was having before. Praise the Lord!

I've had a hard time over the past several days. A lot of you that read this already know that we lost a young mother that attended church with us. She was 36 years old and died in a car accident on Friday. I used to work with her sister at the drug store, and my husband and parents still do...not to mention that we also worship with her and her husband and her parents. It has just really been weighing so heavily on my mind. I, as a parent, cannot IMAGINE outliving my children! It totally brings me to my knees to even try to fathom it. I have hurt so much for her mom and dad. Her twelve year old son....TWELVE. As if that isn't a hard enough age already, and he's already been through so much in his 12 short years. Her husband, who was driving the car and walked away from the accident...I pray that he will not be haunted by the sights and sounds of that Friday afternoon for the rest of his life. The whole thing has just made me realize once again how fleeting life really is. It's also made me appreciate even more the sacrifice that God made for us by giving us Jesus. It has also made me more aware that we should always be ready to go. God doesn't want us to have to "get ready" he wants us to "live ready." I pray that I will do that. Please pray for the Jones, Parrish, and Smith families. I pray that they will feel God's loving arms around them.

"Why am I so sad? Why am I so upset? I should put my hope in God and keep praising him, my Savior and My God." Psalm 42:5 (NCV)

Slow going...

2006-05-29T09:03:00.000-05:00

Well, here it is. The first post since my surgery. It's taking me a while to type this one, so it won't be long. You can see by the picture that my fingers are quite swollen. They stay this way if I don't constantly keep my hand elevated, so I need to get back in there and put some ice on it and prop it up. The surgery went well. The worst thing is having to keep it bandaged up like this for 2 weeks. It is very inconvenient and annoying. Not to mention hot and itchy...and I've only been dealing with it now for about 3 days!! I'll get back into blogging more regularly as soon as I can type faster. Thanks for the prayers and concern!!

Soul Patrol!

2006-05-25T09:51:00.000-05:00

I must say that I'm not surprised that Taylor won, and I do love him dearly. At the risk of getting kicked right out of the state of Alabama, I am still going to maintain that Kat is the better singer. I LOVE Taylor's voice...very original and I'm sure I'll buy his album, but I'll also buy hers...and you KNOW she'll have one! I enjoyed the finale...even if it was quite drawn out. OK...I gotta give my best and worst moments of the show. Best: The little "Clay Aiken" guy that was so pitiful...when Clay came out! OH MY WORD! I thought the poor guy was either going to have a heart attack or wet his pants! That was hilarious! The worst...BY FAR, was Meatloaf! HELLO?? What in the world!!! Kat should've won just for being able to stay on key trying to sing with him! She did great during that song, and I honestly don't know how she was able to do that well when he was so off! Anyway, there's my opinion of the show!!

Now, I wanted to post a few pictures from the UPWARD soccer banquet. We had a good time and I think it was a great community outreach. These pictures are my favorites of the ones I took.
The first one is before we left for the banquet.

The second is of Macy and her friend Abby.

And the third is of Macy with her soccer ball that all the kids received at the awards.

Now, to update you all on what's going on with my wrist surgery. I have to be at the surgery center at 10:15 in the morning. My surgery is scheduled for 11:15. Feel free to say a prayer for me during that time! I went for my pre-op yesterday, and the nurse told me that it would take longer for them to get me bandaged up after the surgery than it would take the doctor to actually do it! That's pretty nutty! It sounds like I shouldn't even be there all that long. I will have IV sedation, but it's not general anesthesia. She said that I will probably "nap" and won't have a clue what's going on, but it won't be something that it takes me half a day to wake up from. She feels like I'll only be in recovery about 45 minutes (make sure I feel OK, get something to drink, etc...). So, that's the latest on that situation. I'm glad to know that is must not be as involved as I had imagined, but I'm still not excited about the IV. At least with the actual surgery, I won't know what's going on. I HATE IV's.

That's all I've got for today! Bear with me, as it might be a little while before I post again. I will at least post a short blog to let you all know how my surgery went, but since it might take me a while to type, it won't be much! Thanks in advance for your prayers!! Have a great weekend and a good Memorial Day!!

The Countdown Begins...

2006-05-23T09:05:00.000-05:00

This is a little bit of a busy week for me. I know that you all are frantically checking my blog, eagerly anticipating the exciting things I have to share, but please, don't get too excited! I don't have a lot to share, I just thought I would fill you all in a little on what's going on with the Wallace's this week.

Tonight, we have the UPWARD soccer awards night. (I wanted to put some kind of picture on this post...how do ya like the soccer ball trophies?!)
Anyway, it will be very neat, I'm sure. We're expecting a huge crowd. There are 170 kids playing from all over the community, so if they all come and bring their family members, we should have a pretty packed house! It will be such a good conclusion to our spring season. All the kids are going to receive a soccer ball with the UPWARD logo on it. I know they will like that. I wish that you'd say a little prayer that the banquet goes well and that we will be able to bring others to Christ through this ministry.

In more news, as you might have read in one of my first blogs, I'm having wrist surgery. Well, it is already time! It seems like it got here awfully quick!! My surgery is Friday, so that is the main reason that my week is a little busy. I have my pre-op tomorrow. I am trying to make sure that the house is in order and the laundry is done before I go "under the knife." I just don't know what to expect. He has told me that I'll have stitches for 2 weeks, as well as some sort of cast or dressing that he doesn't want me to get wet. I just figure that I'll be in enough pain and inconvenienced enough that I won't be doing housework for a few days. So, I'm going to continue to work toward the goal of getting my house ready for the next few days. I wish you'd also say a little prayer for me and my nerves about this surgery. Also, pray that my kids will be good during my recovery! Brady is doing GREAT with his potty training, but he doesn't want to use his little potty chair, he wants to sit on the big potty...that's fine, except that I'll be having to lift him up there. I need to think of a way to make the "little potty" more appealing to him!

So, there's the story of my week. I usually say at least SOMETHING about American Idol on my Tuesday post, but this week is a little different. I am usually looking forward to shipping the kids off to the in-laws so that I can park in front of the TV for the evening and watch, but not tonight. We have that banquet, so the in-laws are only taking Brady. Then, we'll be at the banquet during American Idol, so I'll have to watch it when I get home. I don't know what to expect tomorrow night! I think Taylor will win, but it won't totally shock me if Kat gets it! They'll both do great from this point!!

Have a great Tuesday!!

"for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose."Phil. 2:13

How Fitting!

2006-05-19T15:42:00.000-05:00

If I emailed any of you this picture already, just ignore this blog. I tried not to send it to anyone that I thought might see it here. I took this picture of Brady while ago, and I didn't realize how funny it was until I loaded it on the computer. Now, I thought it was funny to begin with, because the whole reason I was taking the picture was to show his shirt. It makes me laugh everytime I look at it...mostly because if I had designed the shirt myself, it couldn't have been any more perfect for him! In case you can't read the whole sentence, it says, "I do all my own stunts." Now, to me, that alone is HILARIOUS! Well, to make it even funnier, take a look at the big red knot on his forehead! HAHA He does his own stunts, that's for sure! More than once, they've landed us in the ER. Luckily, not this time. He only fell off the arm of the recliner and cracked his head on the base of the floor lamp. Oh the joys of having a boy!

Random Thoughts...

2006-05-18T10:40:00.000-05:00

Shall we start with a proper farewell to Elliot Yamin? He is a great singer and a seemingly great guy...very humble and emotional. I really like him...but I do think, personally, that America made the right choice. I still can't believe that there was less that 1 percentage point seperating all 3 of them! Wow! I do believe he'll make an album, and I think it'll be good! Not to mention...I'll be seeing him, along with the the other top 9 in Birmingham on August 8th! WOOOHOOO!! I'm SO excited!

Now, in other news...Potty training is going well at my house! HA! It is amazing to me, really, how well Brady has done. It's true what they say about when the child is ready, they'll do it. He just decided one day, after weeks of me trying to get him interested, that he would start using the potty. I had to share this picture of him with his new haircut...in his training pants. He looks like SUCH a big boy!!

The funniest thing that has happened in the process happened last night. I went over to a girlfriends house for a little birthday party and to watch American Idol, and my cell phone rang. It was Brady. He was calling to tell me that he had poo pooed in the potty! Well, that in itself was exciting news, because that is one area of the potty training that hasn't been going so well. So, then, I got the better news. Not only had he done it in the potty, he had told his daddy that he needed too!! Yeah! We usually have to "catch him in the act." So, things are looking up around here! I know you are all thrilled to be reading a blog about poop. Hey, if you're a person that has ever potty trained, you'll appreciate this blog!

Now, I couldn't close this blog without also posting a picture of the the elder Wallace child...the future nurse.

What's funny about this is that it's a recent development. She's always told me that when she grows up, she wants to be a mommy. I think that is so sweet. Sometimes, she'll say she wants to be a mommy and a teacher or something like that. Well, at her preschool graduation last week, after they called out their name, the would say, "When Macy grows up, she wants to be a ....." Well, I was so excited and looking forward to when it was Macy's turn, because I thought it would be so sweet to hear, "When Macy grows up, she wants to be a mommy." I could just hear the audience saying, "awwwww." Well, to my surprise, the booming voice said, "When Macy grows up, she wants to be a nurse." Well, that was the first time I had ever heard that! It was pretty funny!! So, now, that seems to be the career she's hung up on! Fine with me!! We'll see what she says next week!

Well, I'm off for my stroll around the block. Have a great Thursday!!

O Happy Day!!

2006-05-17T12:45:00.000-05:00

Well, I just couldn't wait to share the news! My sister-in-law, her husband and my nephew are moving to Tuscaloosa! YIPPIE!!!!! He is getting out of the Army! For anyone that might not know, they've been in Fort Bragg, North Carolina for a while now (that is, when Justin wasn't in Iraq)! Anyway, he was in Iraq for a long time last year (they found out Etta was pregnant the day before he left and he came home for his R&R when Justin Michael was born...but due to some delays, missed the birth by a few hours). They (Etta & Justin Michael) lived here the whole time Justin was gone, so we got quite used to having them around...especially my kids. Needless to say, none of us had a real easy time sending them back to NC after Christmas. The grandparents have been out to see them a couple of times, but we aren't able to do so. Now, Tuscaloosa...that's a different story! That's a weekend trip, easy!! Especially during football season!

I know that this is the best thing for their family. They are a prayerful family and have been seeking God's guidance through their entire job search. I know they will be a light wherever they are planted...I'm just so thankful that it is in Alabama!!

Sacred Tuesday!

2006-05-16T15:53:00.000-05:00

Well, here I am again on my blessed Tuesday. My routine is to get the kids off to the in-laws, do whatever needs to be done around the house, fix supper, and sit down to watch a little TV...namely:

Now, I must admit that this post might look a little familiar because I have a bit of the same conflict this week as I did last week...and it involves namely:

I'm very loyal to both of these competitions, so I think that I will probably record American Idol so that I'm sure not to miss anything, but I might have to at least flip over a couple of times to check on the phone numbers should I decide to vote!! It is just so rare that we're able to watch the Marlins on TV in Florence that can't not watch!! Either way, it'll be a nice, quiet evening at home. I feel like I am a little selfish with my Tuesdays. A lot of times...tonight being one of those times...there are things scheduled on Tuesday nights that I feel like I need to go to (i.e., baby showers), but I just can't bring myself to give up my Tuesday! It's not even about the TV watching...it's about being home with no kids and my husband actually here! That is SO rare! Most of my girlfriends act as if they would do the same thing, so I guess that makes me feel better. I usually buy a gift and send it to the shower...isn't that the most important thing anyway?! HA!

I wish a I had a picture to post of my sweet Brady. He got his hair cut today and didn't behave very well...that is until we spotted a rack on the wall containing packs of cashews. Yes, cashews! He LOVES them. So, I told him that he could have some if he would straighten up, and that did it. He's got a sweet, summer haircut. The poor boy has hair woes...a double crown and a cowlick. About the best thing for it is to keep it short. I'm sure there will be a picture to come soon.

Hope you all enjoy your Tuesday as much as I know I will!! Did I mention that when my in-laws bring the kids home, they've had baths! Yippie!