I Hate Blogger!!

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!

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!

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!

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

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!!

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!!

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

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!!!

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!!

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!

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

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!!

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

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!

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

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...?

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??

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??

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

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!