We finally have all of our Christmas decorations put away and the winter (snowman) decorations out. I love to put little things out each season to decorate the house in order to make it seem a little festive and "homey." I actually got the idea from Chris' mom because she always decorates according to the season. Anyway, my mom and I went shopping the Saturday after Christmas to buy new Christmas and winter decorations (I was tired of my old hand-me-downs.) So, I've spent the last few days putting those up around the house. Chris is working this week, so the kids and I have had a lot of time together at home. We've enjoyed just hanging out and taking time to relax. Thankfully, we've been blessed with a good health so far except for a few minor colds.

Now that Christmas is over and it's on to the new year, I wanted to share some of our recent photos. I didn't have any time to scrapbook this year, so I decided to put together a scrapbook on Shutterfly. I know it'll cost a pretty penny, but I'd rather do that then get further behind. So, here are a few photos of our family this Christmas season.

Baking cookies at Grammy's house before Christmas.

(Gavin, Me, Andrew (nephew), Ginger (sister-in-law) and Ivey)

The kids opening presents on Christmas morning. Gavin got a Spider Man umbrella. I think an umbrella was a popular gift among 2-year olds this Christmas. I think several of Gavin's buddies brought new umbrellas to church on Sunday!

Morgan gets a new Ipod for Christmas. I hope he takes care of it!

All of the grandkids on my side of the family.

Morgan - 12, John - 5, Ivey - 4, Emma - 3, Gavin - 2, Robbie - 15 months, Timothy - 13 months

My sister is due with a baby girl in February.

Below is the newest member of Chris' side of the family. Her name is Jamie Grace and she is 6 weeks old.

Today we had a really fun Christmas Day. We started off the morning by opening a few present here at home. We then proceeded to mom's house where we opened presents and ate brunch with my side of the family. In the afternoon, we headed over to Chris' parents' house where we opened presents and ate dinner with his side of the family. We came home around 7:45 PM so that we could put our over-tired, exhausted children to bed. I think that Gavin either had WAY too much candy (which is entirely possible) or he was extremely over-tired because he just fell asleep about 15 minutes ago. Anyway, we had a great day enjoying our family.

We are still in the throws of finishing our basement. All of the drywall is up, so Chris and I will begin painting this weekend before the trim, ceiling and carpet is installed. Actually, I can hear him rolling on primer as I sit here and type. We are really excited to finally be able to use this space in our home. It's a lot of work, but we've been extremely fortunate to find good help. So, for the next week we'll be continuing to work on the basement and looking forward to Chris' 32nd birthday on Jan. 3rd.

Decorating the tree

I can't believe it's already December!! We put up our Christmas decorations the weekend after Thanksgiving and enjoyed spending time together decorating the house. Here are a few pictures to share:

We are also in the processing of cleaning out our basement. Chris and his business partner, Ken, decided that they could move the business to our basement (it's funny that I wasn't invited to THAT breakfast meeting) in order to save on their rent. Luckily, one of the builders in our church is available and will start tomorrow. The project should take until the end of January, but it will be well worth it. I'll be sure to add "before" and "after" pictures as the project is being completed. So, this past week has been spent cleaning out and organizing the basement as well as talking to the HOA to make sure that everything is okay. I have to admit that I am really excited to have the basement finished because we'll be able to use it as a family since we'll have a craft room and a TV room down there as well. I'm sure that having Chris and his coworkers in the basement will be a little odd for a while, but the kids and I will have to learn that we can't go down there during the day. It'll be an adjustment, but I think it's a wise financial move for the business right now.

We have a slightly busy week coming up, but things are starting to slow down (at least for me.) We'll be celebrating my mom's 61st birthday this weekend as well as Ivey's first ballet recital on Saturday. I'll be sure to record iton my camera so that I can show it to you. Have a great week!

We had a great Thanksgiving Day today. Gavin wasn't feeling good yesterday with a stomach ache and slight fever, but today he was much better by mid-morning. After cleaning the house and Lysol-ing everything that Gavin has touched, we had many family members at our house today and it was really nice to spend time with everyone. Tomorrow, instead of shopping like I have the past three years, Chris and I are going to pull out the Christmas decorations. In the midst of that, we're also going to try organizing and cleaning out the basement. We're hoping to get the basement finished within the next month or so, so we really need to clean out and take some stuff to Good Will. Anyway, for some reason, I'm not as excited about getting out the Christmas decorations as I usually am. I don't know why. Hopefully I'll get into the Christmas spirit soon! I've really tried to make the next few weeks very low key, with only a few things here and there on the calendar, so I will hopefully have time to get some things cleaned out at home. However, Morgan has decided that he wants to play basketball at church, so that will be on our to-do list as well.

I just can't keep up. The days are FLYING by. I've got lots of stuff on my "to do" list and, hopefully, I won't forget anything that's really important. This weekend is totally empty for us, so we're going to enjoy spending some down time together.

One project that we finished a few weeks ago was cleaning out the garage. We can finally, after 2 years, fit both of our cars in the garage! All of the baby toys, tricycles and wagons went to the basement for future consignment sales and we tried to organize the other stuff. We are really enjoying parking our cars in the garage when it's freezing cold outside in the mornings!

Another fun moment was a few days ago. The weather had been a little overcast and rainy. We looked outside and saw a beautiful rainbow. We could see the whole thing from our front portch and it was huge! It was really fun to get the kids outside to see it and to remind them of who gives us rainbows and why. Ivey even knew the right answer!! (In case you don't know: God; as a sign of his promise to never flood the whole earth again).

Lately, I've been busy with Christmas shopping, cleaning, organizing, choir practices, handbells, church events and just being a mom and wife. Chris has taken up flag football and is exercising like crazy! He's also working on a new site called notesbymail.com and is hoping to have gift cards added very soon. Check it out if you get a chance. Next week, we'll be getting ready for our families to come over for Thanksgiving dinner although we'll be missing a few members. So, life keeps on.

In a spiritual sense, God has been working on me a lot lately. Specifically, he's been working on my mind. To be honest, I'm not really sure that I want to share the details yet, but, in short, I desperately needed my mind to be transformed. I was having thoughts, almost obsessively, that I needed God to remove. I finally gave up one night and just prayed that He would take the thoughts away. Honestly, I really didn't think he would or even that he could. But he did! It's really, actually, quite amazing. So, anyway, that's what been going on with me and I hope to get back to blogging soon.

It's official... Gavin is potty trained with #1. He's done really well the last few weeks. He still has an accident every now and then, but they are getting fewer and farther between. He can actually hold it for a while and not have to go potty every 20 minutes! So, we are very happy about that here! As for #2, that's another story. It could be a while before he gets that down, so for now we'll be happy with #1. I'm just glad that we're not spending a fortune in diapers any more! And, I don't have to remember to put a piece of tape on his back that says "Take me potty, please" every time we go somewhere where he's left in childcare. The guys at Chris' office got a real kick out of me putting tape on Gavin's back, but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?? I needed consistency, which requires the help of other people... hence, the tape. Anyway, we don't have to use the tape as much, so we're making progress! YEAH!

Potty training

Please pray for us... we're in the throws of potty training (again) with Gavin. He started out really well at the beginning of the summer, but then we left to go the beach and it was back to diapers. This past Sunday night, he decided that he wanted to wear "big boy underwear." So, we put them on him. He stayed dry the rest of the night. He wore them yesterday and had 2 accidents all day. So far today, he's had 2 accidents, but not for lack of trying. I promise he seriously has to go to the bathroom about every 20 minutes!! Nevertheless, we really aren't giving us this time. We're going to keep putting on the big boy underwear and keep having accidents until he gets it. He can sit on the potty to go, but he hasn't realized the "urge" yet so he doesn't tell before he needs to go. Anyway, he goes back to preschool tomorrow and I'm a bit nervous about sending him in underwear. I hope his teacher is ready for this!! Do you have any ideas, suggestions or advice? Please let me know if you do! This is our last baby to potty train and we're throwing a party when it's done!! Whoo-hoo!!

Trick-or-Treating

Even though we don't officially "celebrate"
Halloween (with ghosts, goblins, witches and such), we do have a great time taking the kids trick-or-treating. This year, Morgan dressed up as a karate kid, Ivey was a clown and Gavin was Spiderman. Chris' family came over, we ate chili for dinner and then we took the kids out. Chris' cousin, Mandi, came dressed as Sarah Palin. It was pretty cute! Here are a few pictures from our fun evening of collecting candy (much of which will get put in the trash...ssshhhhh!)

My husband

I don't do this often enough, but I just want to take this opportunity to brag on my husband. Last night, we had a much needed date night. With money tight and watching every dime we spend, we finally had the opportunity to go out. We hired a friend of mine to come watch the kids, so Chris and I headed to the outlet mall. We ate dinner at Chick-Fil-A (who wants to spend $50 on a meal anymore??) and then went across the street to do some shopping. We both needed a few clothing items, but, of course, found a few more things than we were looking for. It was wonderful to spend time with Chris, just walking and talking. One of the things I love about our times alone is that we almost always have a conversation about how our relationship is going. You know with kids it's so easy to just get used to each other, take each other for granted and be caught in a rut of going, going, going... So, I enjoy these conversations because it gives a chance to reflect on what's going on between just the two of us. One of us normally starts the conversation with some kind of question that we both have to answer. This time, I started the conversation... "What's one thing that I do that you really like or that I do very well, and what's one thing I could use improvement on?" Of course, Chris named off a bunch of things that he thinks I do really well and named one thing I could use improvement on. So, then it was my turn to answer the question about him. Here's the things my husband does well...

1. Balances work and home EXTREMELY well

2. Works VERY hard to provide for our family

3. Easy to get along with

4. Takes care of himself by exercising and eating healthy

5. Has activities/hobbies that he enjoys outside of the house

6. Doesn't micro-manage me

7. Is an AWESOME dad (plays with the kids when he gets home from work, lays with them in bed at night just talking, wrestles with the boys)

8. Is involved in an accountability group (yes, that's important to me)

9. Loves the Lord

10. Serves in our church

I could go on, but I wanted to list things that really are important to me. The one thing he could improve on? Bring home flowers more often. :-)

I love you, babe!

Morgan participates in the Boosterthon Fun Run at school.

Morgan throw out peace signs while doing homework - not always a "peaceful" time! :-)

I did yesterday what I swore I would never do... I let Morgan skip school to celebrate his birthday. Yes, I did! Morgan's actual birthday is Saturday, but he'll be with his dad this weekend. Chris and I had promised to get a mountain bike for Morgan for his birthday, so we made a day out of doctor's appointments, getting the bike and lunch at his favorite restaurant. After lunch, Chris took Morgan mountain biking while the little ones and I rested at home. We don't make a habit out of skipping school and I really don't think, in the grand scheme of things, it would be a big deal. (I know, Mom, you disagree.) Anyway, we did have a great day and topped it off with dinner out with the whole family at Red Lobster.

When we got to the doctor's office in the morning for Morgan and Ivey's well-checkups, we didn't realize that Ivey was due for 4 shots plus the flu shot. Needless to say, she was NOT happy about that! She tried to be so brave with the first two shots, but then she lost it when we had to flip her around for the other three in the opposite arm. I felt so badly for her, but she made it through, the nurse gave her some Tylenol and she got a surprise at Target a little later. Morgan was in the 50th percentile for height and weight. Ivey, on the other hand, was in the 90th percentile for height and weight. She weighs 42 pounds and was 42 1/2 inches tall. Holy, Moley!! She's a solid girl!! She's certainly not fat and I am very careful about what she eats... she's just a big girl. They also weighed Gavin while we were there so he wouldn't feel left out and he only weighs 30 pounds. Ivey's only 16 months older than Gavin and outweighs him by 12 pounds!!Anyway, we got through the doctor's appointment and spent the rest of the day celebrating Morgan's 12th birthday.

Apple picking

Thanks to my neighbor, Maryanne, who gave me this great idea about apple picking... Chris and I took the family to Ellijay this past Saturday for some apple picking. We had a blast, got some great pictures and came home with a TON of apples! We went to a place called BJ Reece Apple House. It was really fun spending time with the kids, watching them run around and spending quality time as a family. Here are some pictures from our day...

Morgan loved climbing to the tops of the trees to get some big, juicy apples!

Gavin enjoys a fresh picked apple. I'm not sure if we were supposed to eat them on the spot or not, but we did enjoy one or two...

Ivey tries hard to get that apple off the tree!

Chris and I enjoy a silly moment. That apple WAS yummy!

Chris could barely carry our bag of apples. We had packed the bag with as many as we could fit. Now, I'm off to find some great apple recipes!

Mom and I headed down to the Auburn game Saturday. Auburn was playing Arkansas at home. I love going to the football games. I used to go with my family as a kid, but it really is so much more fun now than even then. I went to a local college that doesn't have a football team and because I had a baby, I didn't really get to have that "college experience." So, for me, going to Auburn football games is a way to have that experience, to enjoy and take part in the traditions and to enjoy the college atmosphere. My dad, mom and sister all went to Auburn, so we've been Auburn fans my whole life. Anyway, mom and I had a great time just hanging out, going to Tiger Walk, watching the band, shopping and, most of all, cheering for the Tigers at the game. It was a great game and lots of fun. Unfortunately, we lost... but every team is bound to have a bad season at some point. Here are a few pictures of our time in Auburn.

Auburn fans hanging out before the game.

I LOVE to watch the band - it's almost as exciting to me as watching the game itself. I especially love watching the drumline, since I was a drummer in high school.

At Tiger Walk - an Auburn tradition. Fans line up in street to cheer on the football team as they walk from the athletic dorms to the stadium. Here, I got a picture of Tommy Tubberville.

Here we are - my favorite part!! The band runs on to the field to do the pregame show. I love it!

Mom and I had seats in the endzone, on the 5th row, right across the stadium from the band and student section. When the teams were on our end, we could see really well. I was hoping to get a picture of an Auburn TD, but not so much...

Mom and I enjoying the game.

Psalm 78:32 - 39

In spite of all this (the miracles the Israelites witnessed in the desert), they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.

So he ended their days in futility and their years in terror.

Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again.

They remembered that God was their Rock, that God Most High was their Redeemer.

But then they would flatter him with their mouths, lying to him with their tongues; their hearts were not loyal to him. They were not faithful to his covenant.

Yet he was merciful; he forgave their iniquities and did not destroy them. Time after time he restrained his anger and did not stir up his full wrath.

He remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return.

This is what I read in my quiet time this morning. How often I do not believe in his miracles even when I witness them time and time again. How often I doubt God's ability to deliver me or other people from the muck and the myre that we so often find ourselves in, usually due to our own decisions. So, God undoubtedly and relentlessly gets my attention and I go running to him. I cry out to him. In my weakness I beg him to change the circumstances, I get mad because he isn't doing it... Then I remember that he is my Rock and my Redeemer. He's the reason that I sing. He's my Strong Tower, my Deliverer, my Shield, my Strength, He's my God. Yet, again, I walk away from him little by little. I get complacent. I get comfortable. I forget who he is and what he's done. I see my circumstances. I'm blinded by my wants and desires. Yet he is merciful. He holds his wrath from me. He restrains his anger and remembers that I am but a passing breeze, a vapor in the wind.

Lord, may I glorify you during my short time on this earth. May I praise you and worship you and know you for who you are. May I remember the miracles I've seen you give, may I bring honor to you in all I do. Let me not to see my circumstances from underneath the tapestry, where everything looks like a big mess, but from above the tapestry where every string, every knot, every loop makes a beautifully woven piece of art. You are my Rock and my Redeemer.

Another day...

Well, after running several errands this morning... the wheels of my brain were running a hundred miles an hour trying to think of things that people would actually buy. With the economy the way that it is right now, people aren't buying much of anything... but a girl's gotta make some money. So, this afternoon I started making baby bibs with a monogrammed saying, bows and a matching hair bow. I must say they ARE really cute, but who knows... I'll put it on etsy or ebay and see what happens.

On another note, I enjoyed watching the presidential debate last night. Although, I must admit that most of the time they were talking WAY over my head... all those BIG words... YIKES! I think God put some sort of block in brain when it comes to vocabulary.

Anyway, so what's up with me? I'm still frustrated that money is tight. We have been VERY blessed and this year has been a great learning experience for me monitarily speaking. Things could definitely be worse. I'm thankful that I AM able to stay home with my kids, we ARE able to put our little ones in preschool, Chris DOES have a job, we ARE NOT starving, we DO have clothes, we DO have enough money to go to the doctor, we ARE able to eat something other than ramen noodles... I guess things really aren't that bad. Thanks, God. You're awesome. You provide food for the birds of the air, how much more you provide for me because you love me.

What's going on?

I can't believe it's been several weeks since my last post. Of course I've been busy "doing things", but what's really been going on? (Thanks, Bud!) Honestly, I'm not really sure. I read all of these beautiful posts by people who really know how to write. But, me? I just know how to put my thoughts down and that's about it. So, here's what I'm doing...

I'm currently praying hard for a marriage in our family to be reconciled. I'm praying for my husband's business to flourish. I'm praying for my oldest son's achievements in school, wisdom to raise him and to keep an open relationship, and that God would bless him with a God-worshipping wife in later years. I'm going crazy that my youngest isn't potty training, but, after all, that really isn't at the top of my priority list right now. I'm frustrated that Chris and I have dug ourselves into a medium-sized hole of debt from our early marriage that we've spent the last 6 months and will spend the next 6 months viligently paying off. But, that means no new clothes, no new shoes, no extras and living on a VERY fixed cash flow each week. I'm frustrated and a little depressed that I want and need to make some extra money, but can't seem to get anything off the ground. I've made hairbows and handmade dresses, tried my hand at monogramming and have only sold ONE item - twenty dollars isn't really going to make a dent into anything. I'm loving my children and having a great time playing with them. I'm trying not to focus on the incoveniences of life right now, trying to enjoy the time at home and being with the family, but, well... you know. I'm loving my Lord and trying to honor him in everything. I'm enjoying reading the Bible - I'm in Psalms and Proverbs right now. I'm sure there's more... Anyway, that's the honest truth about what's going on with me right now.

Much accomplished

Yesterday was a great day! I got two major projects accomplished. While the kids were at preschool yesterday, I went running with a neighbor for a little while and then came back home to clean out the playroom. I even had time to take a shower before leaving to pick up the kids. Those of you with kids in preschool understand what I'm saying - I think the clock goes mysteriously faster when the kids are at school! I went through EVERYTHING and threw away a ton of stuff. Our neighborhood is having a garage sale this Saturday, so I'm trying to find stuff to sell. I reorganized the whole playroom and only kept toys that the kids actually play with. All the missing pieces, cheap happy meal toys and other toys considered by me to be "trash" was gone! It feels so good! Then, last night after dinner Chris and I cleaned out the garage. Although there wasn't much to throw away, we got everything back in it's place and made a pile for the garage sale. Hopefully after we get through with the sale and take what's left over to Goodwill, the garage will look even better. I love it when I actually get things accomplished!!

The last couple of weeks, I've been struggling to have a daily quiet time. I have decided to take this one day at a time because it just seems easier that way. I try to read my bible in the morning because when the day gets going I normally don't slow down until late at night. So, yesterday morning I read something that really struck me and I wanted to share it. Even though I don't always have a quiet time with God every single day, even though I know the importance of it, I love the Lord with all my heart. I think it's important for others to know that I don't have it all together and that I don't always do the right thing. I'm not a perfect Christian and I struggle just like every one else. But, I do know one thing. Jesus Christ is my Savior and I will live for him the best that I can. I often lack the words to express my feelings for my Savior, but I thought David did a good job of it in Psalm 62.

Psalm 62:1, 2, 7, 8

"For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken. On God rests my salvation and glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us."

My baby girl turns 4!

Ivey weighed in at 9 lbs!

On Saturday, Sept. 20th, we celebrate Ivey's 4th birthday. She's such an awesome little girl. She constantly makes Chris and I laugh and then shake our heads. She is the most mothering little girl I've ever known. She loves to take care of other people, especially kids. Sometimes she's a bit bossy (I have NO idea where she gets that...), but she loves to help take care of others. I'm excited to see her grow up and to see what God has in store for her life. Here are a few special pictures from the last four years...

This one I made for my new neice coming in November. It was made out of an old pillow case that belonged to my mother-in-law.

This is an autumn dress that I made for Ivey. It's really cute, but it was my first one so it has a few minor mistakes.

This one, I love!! The paisley is adorable and the colors are even prettier in person.

This one is made out of a light courderoy material, although you can't tell in this picture. I also need to get more fat white ribbon instead of using the skinnier ribbon. But, my friend, Kala, picked out the apple fabric and it really is very cute!

THIS... is what I've been up to! I've decided to start making pillow case dresses!! Although only one of these was actually made using a pillow case, I found some really pretty fabric to use for the other dresses. Kala and I went to Hancock Fabric yesterday and I bought some really cute holiday fabrics. I am going to make a bunch of them in varying sizes to sell at craft shows and to friends and, hopefully, make a little bit of extra money on the side. I was just thinking last week about how I could make a little bit of extra money without having to get a "real" job, so I think this is it. I've shown them to a lot of my friends and neighbors, so I hope they'll catch on soon... (hint, hint). :-)

Anyway, I'm excited about it and it's really fun to just get creative with embellishments and stuff. I bought a beautiful royal blue fabric that it a light courderoy and I'm going to monogram it with Ivey's initial, add some ribbon and some pom-pom fringe. Adorable!! I'm also going to try to sell some dresses on etsy or ebay. We'll see what happens. If you're interested in me making your girls some dresses, please let me know. You can pick out of what I've already made or you can buy your own fabric if you want something specific. I'm really looking forward to this because it's a way for me to be creative, to have fun and to make a little pocket money, too!

We're leaving for the beach tomorrow, so I probably need to get going with that. I'm super excited to be spending some time on vacation while Cherokee County is out of school next week. We're going with some friends from church, but I wish all of our friends good go!! We will be coming back on Thursday, so I better get goin'! Talk to you later!

It's been a while since I've updated my blog. I've managed to keep myself very busy the last couple of weeks. MOPS started last Friday, so last week was spent getting shirts made and sewing fabric to get ready for the first meeting. We are leaving on Saturday to spend a few days at the beach with a few of our close friends, so this week has been used to sort of get ready for that. Today, I've been working on a couple of projects that I will unveil in a few days. I want to be sure they are completely finished before showing them off! Tomorrow morning I plan to go to the gym and I don't know what I'll do on Thursday but I'm sure I'll find something! Anyway, please know that we are all doing fine and managing well.

My favorite bible verse for today:
Proverbs 11:12 "Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent." This verse speaks to me today because God has been teaching me lately about not jumping to conclusions. I find that my mind finds the worst-case scenario and then runs with it before I even have a chance to find out what really happened. God has shown me that I need to be more understanding of others and remain silent more often.

It's football time!!!

I just initiated the 2008 football season! I yelled, "Get 'em!"

That's all I really know to yell since it's all I ever heard during football season at my house growing up. So when my team is running down the field I yell, "Go! Go! Go!" and when my team needs to make a tackle I yell, "Get 'em!" and if I really mean business I yell, "GET HIM!" (over emphasizing the H-I-M.) Sometimes they listen and sometimes they don't.

Most of the day today has been spent watching football. We went to the mall for a little bit this afternoon to buy Ivey some new shoes - yes, we have to spend a fortune at Stride Rite because she still wears an EXTRA WIDE shoe! Those of you moms out there whose children have feet that are abnormally wide or narrow know what I'm talking about! It's absolutely rediciulous how much those children's shoes cost! However, there's not much guess work in it because they usually only carry ONE black dress shoe and ONE tennis shoe in XW. Anyway, they were having a buy one, get the 2nd 50% off, so we took advantage of it. I mentioned to Chris when we left that the mall isn't as busy now that football season has started. I kind of like it. I guess most people are at their own children's football games or at home watching there favorite college team play. Anyway, today kicked off a great football season. So, GO GET 'EM TIGERS! WAAAAAAARRR EAGLE, HEY!

Catching up

Well, I haven't written much in the last week. I didn't feel like I had anything overly exciting to write about... just life going on. The younger kids started preschool 3 days a week last week, so that's been really nice. The mornings go by super fast when they're not here - funny how that happens. But, nontheless, I have had a chance to get some things done that would normally be a nightmare with them around trying to "help."

I'm super excited about this weekend because college football season starts. The other night I was reading off to Chris what teams were playingon TV this weekend and next weekend and then I found myself continuing on...and on...as if he really cares who's playing on TV in October! I was just so excited I couldn't help myself!

Anyway, we have gotten some really good rain here and I hope that has helped our drought situation. I know it's been good for my plants and flowers.

Lastly, I have started taking a class on Sunday nights about parenting. It is specifically a study on a book called The Blessing. It is a really good book - a few things are questionable - but overall it's the only book out there that approaches the idea of giving your children, spouse, family members and friends "the blessing" like in biblical times. The five "steps" are:
1. Meaningful touch
2. A spoken message
3. Attaching high value
4.Picturing a special future
5. An active commitment
This class has truly been a God-send for me because it has really made me aware of making sure that I bless my children as they grow. This has become especially important to me with Morgan since he's the oldest, but of course it's very helpful for Ivey and Gavin as well. Two Sunday nights ago we talked about "Meaningful Touch" so I decided that I would try something with Morgan that night. I have to admit that it was a bit awkward and I had to just decide to humble myself and do it. As he was laying in bed and we were talking, I put my hands on both sides of his face and said, "You are very special to me. Did you know that you are special to me?" He said, "Yeah. I think it's like a kid instinct." Yeah, I guess so. Even though I parent much like my own mother did, there are certainly a few things I knew that I wanted to do differently with my children. One of them is to ALWAYS tell them I love them. "I love you" just wasn't something that was said in my house growing up. Not that we didn't love each other, but it was just assumed that we knew, but, unfortunately, sometimes it wasn't. So, I am always telling my kids that I love them. Another thing that I have changed is praying with my kids. Chris or I try to pray with Morgan every night and now we have prayer time with Ivey. We really try to model praying - adoration, confession, thanksgiving and supplication - and not just offer some sort of general, thrown-out-there prayer. Taking the class has really opened my eyes to the importance of the words we speak - in love or in anger. This week we are studying "Attaching High Value" so I'm excited to learn more about that. Just wanted to share a little bit about what I've been learning...

The chore assignments.

Gavin is armed with the Endust, Ivey with the Windex and Morgan gets ready to vacuum. They look excited, don't they??

Tuesday we had a fun evening together. We laid beach towels on the carpet and ate a "picnic" dinner consisting of grilled cheese sandwiches, beans and potato chips. I was trying to butter everyone up for the chore list I had made earlier in the day. I was tired of bits and pieces of the house being clean at different time, so I decided that I wanted the whole house cleaned at once - and what better way to do than for everyone to help! So, after dinner everyone got their assignments, we turned up the music and everybody cleaned. We got just about the whole house cleaned in about 1 1/2 hours. There were a few, small things that were missed, but I finished those up this morning. It was a great way to get the house cleaned and for everyone to help take care of our home.

Where's Gavin?

I took this picture a couple of nights ago. I know it doesn't look like anything except a messy bed, but actually it's how Gavin sleeps. In the picture, it's about 10:30 PM and Gavin has been asleep about 2 hours. He wants to have the bathroom light on so he "can see his toothbrush." But he sleeps better in complete darkness because it's the way he's slept since he was born. So, I just thought it was funny that he gets completely under the covers to sleep. ISometimes he gets all the way to the foot of the bed and we have to pat the covers to make sure he's really under there. Usually I check on the kids before I go to bed, so I normally close the bathroom door and pull the covers off of his head so he doesn't suffocate. (Not that he really would, but it's mom thing ya know?) I didn't worry too much about the flash of the camera since he was under the covers.