How many weeks left of Summer?

I'm having one of those days (or weeks). It's a gray about to rain day. The boys are sick. Still I had a quick errand to run and then we went to the beach to each lunch. Veggie lasagna, roasted vegetables and sushi (thanks PCC). I had high hopes of hot breakfasts and yummy lunches from scratch this summer. Then I realized I don't even know what to make for lunch besides mac n cheese, sandwiches or some variety of noodle soup. The house is a mess, despite my good intentions and plans to finally get rid of stuff and get organized. My oldest is making a fort in the living room of blankets she will forget to clean up. Speaking of my oldest, why is she so much like me? Good and bad... The other 3 are not napping or having quiet time like I sent them to do an hour ago. How many more days of this are left?

Now to the necklaces. :) The one thing I always worry about with the girls names is that they won't ever find their names on anything. You know when you'd be some where and go to the gift shop and find a mug or key chain with your name on it? It's silly. I don't even think they've ever noticed or even bothered to look but I remember loving to do that when I was a kid.

After reading Lissa's post the other day or whenever it was (my days are all blending together) about the Beth Quinn necklace she bought, I of course had to go and explore her website. I happened upon these adorable little girl necklaces. They are so cute and my girls love them!

Yesterday, aside from being Father's Day, was hubby and I's 7th anniversary. I was going to post a wedding pic of us looking so happy and young (and naive) but that was when I thought I had one already scanned so maybe my next post I'll do that. :)

Sigh and now I'm off to remind my kids what nap time/quiet time is supposed to sound like.

xo

Gone to beach

We're at the coast for a couple of days. We came here last year about this time and the kids LOVED it. It's warmer this year (at least yesterday was) and a bit more crowded but the kids are having a great time. Jaxon can even keep up with everyone. What a difference a year makes!

I finished reading my book club book, The Secret Life of Bees. I couldn't put it down. I loved reading with the sound of the ocean in the background. I could do this all the time although I would prefer a warmer, more tropical beach. :)

xo

What a week!

This has been a busy week! We have a couple more events on the family calendar and then we are taking a little break. Yeah! Remember that tea party I said I was going to have way back when. I can't even find the post now. It's been a couple months. Anyhow, I finally did it Monday. I even made little tea cakes.

They were a pain to make but the kids loved them. Kai kept saying what a great day it was. It was worth it. They even liked the tea (I used Tazo Passion Tea. It's fruity and caffeine free.).

I was going to do a post Tuesday because it was 6 months since my mom passed in December. I just never got to it and really I have no words yet. It was too busy to dwell on it too much which was good and bad.

Thursday was my little sister's 11th birthday. There's a pic of us here. That was a busy day of trying to make it special. It's hard. My sister does better one on one and I have 4 kids, 2 of which were with me (the girls) to celebrate with her and 1 who wants so badly (too much so I think) to be her friend. It's complicated, maybe one day I will get into all that drama. I hope it was a special day for Jami. My Aunt flew in from Maryland to celebrate with her and be with her for Saturday for a special church event.

This morning after a rough start, I came home from a walk and one of our neighbors, who I'd never really talked to, brought this over for the kids. I was so blessed by this little token, and her words of encouragement. If you know my kids IRL they can be wild, especially my boys. I could post something everyday about how at least one of the boys has driven me crazy. She told me how loving my kids are and that I'm doing a good job as their mom. I needed to hear that! Sometimes I get so discouraged.

Last but not least, here's our preschool grad! We are so proud of her! The school year is over now. I have to say I am a little sadder than I thought. The kids had such great teachers who love Jesus, were dedicated and just loved on the kids. Now they're going to be stuck with me. ;) This summer will give me a lot of opportunities to practice what I preach, especially patience. I am always working on being more patient.

Happy Summer!

xo

What we've been up to

Jo had her first ballet recital on Wednesday. She's taking ballet at our homeschool resource center. It was the cutest. I think her favorite part was getting to wear make up. :) It was fun watching all the different dances. Lots of talented kids.

On Tuesday Jay told me she wanted to get her ears pierced. I was surprised. Big sister got her ears pierced at 4 but Jay told me she wanted to wait until she was a teenager so I'd stopped asking her about it. I took her Thursday to get them done. She cried :( but later told me she was so glad she'd gotten them done. I know it's hard to tell from the pic. You should have seen the earrings she'd originally wanted. They were 3xs the size. I guess she figured the more sparkle the better.

Here we are at our church's 50th anniversary community fair. We're missing one if your counting. Jay was off with one of her BFs. The kids had such a great time. I only got to stop by to drop off one of the kids (he'd had a bday party earlier in the day) and hear Jo sing and then I rushed off to a friend's baby shower. Saturday was a busy day.

I'm looking forward to the summer. I realized today in my class (I'm taking a grief class at church) that what's going to get me through (besides Jesus of course) are my family and friends. So I'm excited to spend the summer spending time with them. It's going to go by fast I know so I should enjoy it instead of worrying how I'm going to keep the kids busy. We'll figure something out. :)

1 more week!

xo

I want to live like this

FEARLESS...

flickr

I know God has plans for me and my family...if I could just get it together...stop being distracted by things that don't matter...and stop being so scared. If I would put my focus on Him. It sounds simple right?

For God hath not given us a spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:7 KJV

God has not given us a spirit of timidity but one of power, love and self-discipline. NIV

xo

Who is that kid?

Saturday I finally took baby boy to get his hair cut. Yes, I shed a few tears watching those long locks disappear. He looks more like his dad and brother now. Very handsome. :) I have to say I loved how he looked before. But I'm pretty sure he likes being able to see. I caught him in the mirror staring at himself and shaking his hair around. It was cute. At least his new do is low maintenance and he shouldn't be mistaken for a girl anymore.

I still haven't had a chance to take pictures of the cards I won from a giveaway by Tara of Blondie 'n' SC. I'm sure you all know her, but I have to gush about how sweet she is. Her blog blesses me every time I read it and puts a smile on my face.

The cards are from frenchie and flea. I won a set of mixed cards and I picked out this set as well. ALL of their cards are adorable and I can't wait to use them. Their blog is here.

Thank you Tara, Allegra and Emily!

pic from frechie and flea (obviously)

And I just want to take a sec to recommend (if you're looking for one) Beth Moore's Praying God's Word Day By Day. It's a daily devotional that puts scripture into prayer form. I know you could do that youreslf, but I love how she does it, and the little tidbits she adds. Often the verses on each given day are exactly what I need to hear.

One of today's scriptures was Psalm 62:8.

"Help me trust in You at all times; help me pour out my heart to You, God, for You are my refuge."

It just makes it so much more personal the way she lays it out, yes?

Have a great week! I am counting down the days until summer!

xo