My New Look

I am ashamed to say I have spent hours upon hours playing with this template. I wanted to do a Valentine theme. If you visited during the day, you may of noticed the craziness going on here! :)

Well, anyway, it isn't complete yet. I am working on it. But this is the basic idea. :)

I've Been Tagged!

I have been tagged by Heather at Being Mrs. Mama. This looks like a fun tag. I had a lot of fun reading Heather's. I hope you'll have fun reading mine. ;-)


Rules:Go back through your archives and post the links to your five favorite blog posts that you’ve written.Link 1 must be about family.Link 2 must be about friends.Link 3 must be about yourself.Link 4 must be about something you love.Link 5 can be anything you choose.Post your five links and then tag five other people. At least TWO of the people you tag must be newer acquaintances so that you get to know each other better.(Readers - don’t forget to read the archive posts and leave comments.)


Link One~ About Family Snow Play

Link Two~ About Friends My Last MOPS Meeting of the Year

Link Three~ About Myself In *Everything Give Thanks*

Link Four~ Something I Love My Curious Georges

Link Five~ Anything I choose Firm Foundations Lesson 1~ Introducing the Bible


Now I am supposed to tag five people. If you want to participate please do this. If not, I understand if you don't. There are some tags I haven't done. But it sure is fun when I do!

Now here are my "victims", LOL!

Mary at Mary's Writing Nook

Mrs. C. at Riverbend Ramblings

Heidi at Ruth's Hands

Deborah at A Cup of Joy

Diane at Tomato Soup Cake

Give Away!!!! Movited Moms Chore Planner

Note~ This post will be displayed at the top of my blog until the contest is over on 2-2-2008. Please scroll down to read other posts. Thank you. :)


1-30-2008 update: I don't understand what I did wrong, but my link was taken off of the giveaway. I was #158. The only thing that I can think of is that they thought that I wasn't buying a new book to give away. I have every intention on buying another book from Motivated Moms to give away. Not the one in my own file.

It is time for another great giveaway and lots of fun! Last giveaway I won two items, and gave away this outfit.

This time I am offering something that has helped me out a lot in my housekeeping. It is the Motivated Moms Chore and Cleaning Schedule. I like it so much that, this is what I am giving away to one winner. I wrote about it once on a Works for Me Wednesday Post. If you would like to read about it. ;-) This is open to international folks too, so please participate! :)

All you have to do is leave a comment and explain why you would like to give Motivated Moms a try. Then at the end of the contest I will randomly draw a name for the winner. I will be closing my contest 11:00 Friday night.

In order to be an eligible entry you must leave a way for me to contact you by email. I will need your email address to send you your planner, as it is an ebook. So start commenting away and have fun!

And then don't forget to stop by Rocks in My Dryer to enter more awesome contests!! Fun to be had for everyone!! Just click on the pink giveaway button at the beginning of my post. HAVE FUN!!!

The Lord's Provision

Philippians 4:19

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Often times with this verse, I get slightly confused. Sometimes I think it says my God shall supply all my wants. ;-)

But God's Word is very accurate because many times, when I think I have *needs*, they are actually my wants. Then I get frustrated and depressed thinking God doesn't care about this *need*. The Devil really wants me to believe that lie too.

Well, last week, the Lord let me test this verse out. ;-)

Our van is kind of old, and when we fix one thing, another thing soon needs fixin'. Three weeks ago Bean woke up with an ear infection, and so I toted her to the Dr. After the visit we made an appointment 10 days later to see if the infection had cleared.

We went to the Dr's and the infection had cleared up nicely. As I got into my van, I sort of had a moment of discontentment, and sort of started to covet for a new car. But then, I decided not to be so ungrateful. Instead I decided to thank the Lord for a vehicle to even drive. As I was doing this and turning the ignition, the van turned on, and just as quickly it turned on, it shut off.

"Great!" I thought. I tried it again and again. The kids were hungry now, and to make matter worse, over Christmas I washed my cell phone. Yup that's right. So I didn't have a cell phone, and my husband works an hour away from our home. So it isn't like he could quickly run by to save me.

So I prayed. I hoped that I would just turn the key and it would start. Nope. Now I was beginning to loose some faith. I dragged the kids out of the van, went back into the Dr's., and asked if they would let me borrow their phone.

They were very kind and allowed me to. Once I got my husband on the phone, he asked me various questions about the car. Then he wanted me to go out there, and try to do something to it, then come back in and call him.

The ladies at the reception desk were very nice and offered to watch the girls while I went out to do the experiment that my husband wanted me to.

I went out there, did what he wanted me to do with no success. As I was walking back in the Dr.'s office I ran into a lady from our church. After she said hello to me, it just sort of hit me that this was the answer to my prayer! So I promptly asked her if she had room for 4 more people, and she did! She had a nice big SUV!

So I got a ride home, and got to have some adult conversation at the same time. ;-)

Then, I decided to take Sweetie out for a mother daughter outing; five days later. We went to the fabric store, and then a thrift store. We were about to head to Target when my van did the same exact thing!

This was really cute so I must share. I said, "Oh, no, Sweetie, or van broke again!" Sweetie replied matter of fact like, "Well, I guess we are going to have to call Jesus again." So guess what? That is what I did, and as soon as I opened my eyes, and turned around to look for someone, I saw the lady who gave me horse back riding lessons when I was a little girl walking in the parking lot!

I ran over to her, gave her a hug. I told her that I was praying for help, and would she please help me? She and her husband tried to jump my car, but it wouldn't work. So guess what? She also gave me a ride home, and I got to visit with someone I hadn't seen for a long time. :)

Another "funny" thing was that she had a very small car. If I had all the children with me, there would of been no way for me to get home. God looks at *every* detail doesn't He?

So, this really got me thinking. Each time this happened God didn't leave me high and dry at all. He truly did supply my needs. Sometimes we have wants, and I believe God delights in giving us those too. But the above verse says *needs*. Sometimes we don't *need* our wants, it wouldn't be good for us. Thank the Lord He doesn't give me everything I want, but He will always take care of me!

On a side note, we figured out that our battery connection was loose. There was nothing wrong with the car. I think God was just testing out my faith. :)

Wordless Wednesday~Girls Like Mud Too! ;-)

For more Wordless Wednesday photo's please click visit five minutes for mom.

Having a Little Fun...

My Internet friend Heidi at Ruth's Hands showed this virtual makeover of herself on her blog. I myself have been *really* thinking about getting my hair done a bit differently.

So ALL of you lurkers out there, PLEASE (pretty please) post a comment and let me know what you think! ;-)

If you want to play around with your hair here is the website to go to. :) Make Over Solutions

Also, I don't know if this is *exactly* the color that I want. But my hair is extremely fine, and I have heard that highlights makes it look a bit more fuller. When I was playing around with this site, I found that darker colors looked better on me.

Wordless Wednesday~ Getting Messy Is Fun!

To See what others are showing for Wordless Wednesday please visit, Five Minutes For Mom, by clicking here.

A Girly Tee Pee

I did a lot of sewing for Christmas presents this year. This is one of the items that I made for my girls. A tee pee. Princess style. ;-)

It was very easy to make; one of the easiest things I have made this far I believe. Just straight seams and hemming. Oh, there were two button holes also. Cutting it out was more work than sewing it. :)

There were other parts to making this that didn't require sewing. I had to buy PVC pipe and then paint it. Which was quite a task, because I painted it on a windy day. Yikes! But all and all it was a very fun and easy project.

Last night, the girls camped out in their room with it. Sweetie is being little miss actress here. She isn't really asleep. ;-)

Then, it took them about an hour for them to get settled in. Bean wasn't being very nice to Sweetie. She kept pushing her out of the tent with her feet. :(

Well, that is my show and tell today. To see what others are showing and telling visit Kelli's by clicking on the button at the beginning of my entry. Have a wonderful day. :)

My Grandma's 90th Birthday

On January 1st my Grandma turned 90 years old! We had a small family celebration at a near by hotel's banquet room.

It was a surprise to her, and there is something special that we did for her that I would like to you to see. But before I do that, here are a few pictures I would like to share. Since January's flower is Carnation, and the birthstone is garnet. My parents had a dark red carnation corsage made up for her. Here is her yummy cake.

I wanted to make some special keepsake place cards for the table. I borrowed this idea from MOPS and used the colors of my grandma's party color scheme.
Grandma opening one of her gifts. Sweetie "helping" her out.
And my husband, the one who always brings more life to a party, tries boiling his iced tea in a spoon over a candle! ;-)

But the climax of the party was my Grandma opening her gift from *everyone*. It was a special project that the whole family took part in. We put together a digital scrapbook from Creative Memories of my Grandma's life together.

My Aunt got the photos from my Grandma without my Grandma knowing what it was for. My Aunt told her it was for a class history project. She wanted to show the students old photographs from the past decades. :)

Then my husband spent almost 8, give or take, hours scanning them at work. My mom and our good friend came over to my house and spent the WHOLE day watching the kids while I put the pictures in the template that Creative Memories uses for the album.

Grandma's children, children in-laws, grandchildren, grandchildren in-laws, great grandchildren, and a friend all wrote my grandma a personal note to include within the albums pages.

The album turned out absolutely beautiful, but my Grandma's reaction to it, as they say on the commercial, "Priceless".

Wordless Wednesday~Cousins; Both share the same first name

For more Wordless Wednesday pictures visit 5 Minutes For Mom. Click Here

Our Rainbow

For a few years I have been wanting to get this type of play set for our children. I had been looking at sets from Wal-Mart.com and was really thinking about getting the ones that they sell.

My mom and dad offered to chip in for a play set for the kids as part of their Christmas gift to them. Mom mentioned that my sister's play set that she had bought from SAMS was literally falling apart.

The swing beam was unsafe for the kids to swing on, the wood was splintering and coming apart, etc.

After talking with my sister, I decided to start shopping around. I found one from Play Nation and posted about it on a Internet board I am part of.

One lady posted about her play set that was called a Rainbow, and that it lasted through all of her kids rough play. Her kids are now grown, so they took it down and gave it to someone else.

The next day, my mom called me and told me that they had done some shopping around and found a really nice one called a Rainbow.

The dealership near them had a great sale going on for Christmas, plus free delivery and installation included.

Mom gave me the catalog that they picked up from the dealership. Inside was a promotional DVD. The girls and I sat down and watched it. Of course after seeing that, they wanted one too. ;-) On our way to Michigan we stopped by the dealership to drop off papers to complete the transaction. The girls saw all of their models and were excited and thought we were buying one. I told them that Daddy was talking to the man, and we would see how much it would cost.

When Daddy got back in the van, he said it was too much money. Sweetie began to cry. :( While we were in Michigan we had it installed.

We arrived home late at night, and put the kids right to bed. The next morning, I went about my day like I always do. Opening blinds, straightening up the living room etc.

I was on the computer when Sweetie shouted, "THERE'S A PLAYGROUND IN OUR BACK YARD!!!!" Bean hopped up from what she was doing and ran over to look out our glass sliding door. She started jumping up and down, "THERE IS, THERE IS!!!!"

I pretended I didn't notice what they were doing. They came running over to me, shouting and jumping up and down. I turned and listened to them, and said in a skeptical tone, "No there is not, your telling me a story." Bean said, "There is a Rainbow in our back yard!" I said, "I don't believe you!"

"Come and See!!!" They both said. So I get up like I am somewhat annoyed, and go over to the door. I then said, "Now how did *that* get here?!" Sweetie says, "Maybe the Rainbow people brought it?" I then said, "But how would they know we wanted one?" Bean then pipes in, "Maybe Daddy told them?"

I then smiled and explained that Nana and Papa, help Mommy and Daddy buy it for them for Christmas. Also, Grandma and Grandpa gave mommy and daddy some money to help us buy it.

They got dressed real quick, and played on it until lunch and rest time. Then went out and played on it until it was too dark to see. :)

It comes with a rock wall too!
Tiny Boy trying out the slide
Tiny Boy on the Swing

Bean Checking out the binoculars, and Sweetie climbing up the ladder.

Thanks for visiting my show and tell. To see what others are showing and telling about today, click on the Show and Tell button above. :)

Christmas 2007

This year we traveled to Michigan to spend time and Christmas with my husband's parents. It was a long drive up, but I thought that the children did well for such a long trip. Once I put a diaper on Bean so we didn't have to stop every hour. ;-)

Sunday we went to Church. Usually I don't dress Tiny Boy up much for church. But here he is all dressed up for Church. :)

My In Laws Church has a deaf ministry. Sweetie and Bean saw the people up on the platform signing. After Church they both got up there and did some signs that they know. However, Bean got camera shy, and covered her face. For what reason I don't know, she usually loves her picture taken.
Christmas Eve we went to my husband's mother's side of the family and stuffed our faces on some great food. Then we all just sort of hung out. The kids running around, the grown kids ( um I mean men) playing XBOX. Some of us played Phase 10 and Apples to Apples.

Then we came back to my husband's parents home and I let the kids open one gift. It was their pajamas, which we call cozies, that I made them.

They begin to dig in. Tiny Boy watching in amazement.
"Sooo, that is what you do with this thing! I'll give a whack at it." thought Tiny Boy

"This is a lot tougher than I thought it would be!"

"I GOT PINK!!!" Then Sweetie plasters on her fake smile "Look at mine!"Success!

All ready for bed. Being Silly.

We finally put the kiddos to bed at 11:30! Guess what time I actually got to sleep in to? 9:30am! That is the latest I have slept without interruption since I don't know when.

Once the kids were to bed, I set up the tepee that I made for them. When the girls ran out of the bedroom and saw it, their Aunt told them that it was Grandpa's gift.

When gift opening began I sat the girls in front of the Tepee and we told them that the Tepee was really theirs. Here is a picture of their reaction.

Tiny Boy got some cowboy getupThe girls opening gifts together "Huh?"

All of this was just too overwhelming for Tiny Boy One of the quilts I made for the girls.

Sweetie received face painting Pencils from Grandma. Here is some of the fun I had with them:

A moustache for Tiny Boy. A Tiger for Bean I attempted to do a horse for Sweetie, which didn't quite turn out like I had wanted it to. It was kind of a disappointment to her too.

When I finished up, I told Sweetie to go and look in the mirror and see what she thought about it. She came out with this serious look on her face, which with the horse attempt makeup, made her look very funny. Trying not to laugh, she then says, "I look weird" in a very teenager kind of voice.

At this point I cracked up so much that everyone thought I was crying. I then told Sweetie to tell everyone what she told me. She then proceeded to climb in a chair like she was going to give a speech, and said, "Do I look weird or what!?" Everyone then understood why I was laughing, and at this point Sweetie ran and hid in the Tepee, and this is the shot I got of her horse face. She would look at the camera. :)

Snow Play

When we arrived in Michigan there had been a lot of snow. But the temperatures were warming up, and much of the snow had melted by the time we got there. However, there was enough snow for the girls and Tiny Boy to experience some of it.This is the morning after we arrived

Tiny Boy isn't sure what this stuff is. :) Enough snow to experience some fun.

Bean trying to make a snowman.
"No Sweetie, snow isn't like the beach sand!"

We were supposed to leave Friday Morning, but Thursday night we learned that several inches of snow was supposed to fall the next day. Because of *that* we decided that we would stay a few extra days to play in the snow. :)

The Snow begins to fall and gets heavier by the minute.

By night time there is enough to make a decent sized snow man. Compliments of Daddy of course. ;-) We even had a few fun snowball fights. After Daddy nailed a hard one on my back, I got him good right in the ear! :)
In the middle of the night it rained some, then froze again, making the snow nice and hard for sledding. Daddy's cousin brought his little boy over to play in the snow with the girls. He also brought his four wheeler and attached the sled to the back of it and took them for rides on it. They thought it was soooooo much fun! Here is a video of what they experienced.

At one point, the girls fell off, each landing face first in the snow. Once they did that Bean wanted to ride the four wheeler, and Sweetie was off to play on the Snow Mobile with Daddy's Uncle.
I got on with Tiny Boy! :)

Tiny Boy thought it was great fun, even though he didn't let his emotions get too involved. Every time we stopped, I would ask him if he wanted to get off, and he would grunt and shake his head no, even though he hardly uttered a sound while we were sledding.

Once or twice I screamed as we went down hills, and he would scream too. But he still wanted to ride it.

Daddy also took me for a ride on the Snow Mobile. I still will take riding horses over that any day, but I must admit it was a lot of fun nonetheless! :)