Parenting & Birthday wishes

We are trying so hard to get Carson, our 6yr old to STOP sucking his thumb. One of the things we are trying now is to put a band-aid on his thumb just as a reminder when he puts his thumb in to take it back out. The doctor said after 21 days of no sucking the thumb the habit should be broken. Well our 5 yr old, Cameron has been paying very close attention to all of this and he doesn't suck his thumb but his finger is ALWAYS in his nose. I am constantly having to get onto to him about this and ask him if he needs a tissue. The other day he walked out of the bathroom with a band-aid covering his nostrils and matter of factly stated that he would wear it for 21 days and then he would break the habit of picking his nose.

Kids......aren't they precious?????

Birthday wishes to my brother-in-law, Jimmy. Hope you have a great day!

Blessings

I"m so Cool

12

Well the air is fixed and I could not be happier. In case you were interested we bought one that looks like the first picture not the second one. We did not have room for the unit and the girl nor the money so we settled on the unit alone. :)

Blessings

I am SOOOO Hot!!!

And no I do not mean my looks:) My air conditioner was making a weird noise this week so I had someone come check it out. He said the compressor was on it's last leg and there was nothing he could do for it. It was still cooling so he said keep using it as long as it is cooling and when it stops give me a call and we will replace it to the sweet tune of $1850.00. Now I was still cool and fortunately my neighbor on the side of the air conditioning unit was not home so she couldn't be tortured by the awful schreeching noise it was making. The man left and I prayed that somehow we could wait til the fall to replace it. Well, I got my answer to my prayer today and it was a no. The warm air made it's way into our home at a speed faster than a race car and now at 10:30pm I am typing and sweating at the same time, I guess you could say I am multi-tasking:) It was about 97 today so that did not help things.

In thinking it over I feel like it is more of a test of faith for me today. We had a really great church sermon and morning so it was only appropriate to come home to some hot air to see what I was made of. Can I go with the flow and be thankful for the blessings I still have or am I only going to focus on being uncomfortable for a short while? So far my reaction has been pretty positive I hope I can keep it up. Isn't it typical though how easy it is to act in a Christ-like manner when I am surrounded by all things "comfortable" but the minute the comfort is disturbed it becomes so hard, how selfish of me. My nephew is living in 110 degree heat everyday in Iraq not to mention the 20lbs of extra clothes and gear he has to wear, people all over my town that are homeless have to find places to keep cool and I am inconvienced for probably a day or so and my lower lip comes out. Poor me! Father thank you that I have an air conditioner and that even thought it may be difficult to pay for you have given us the means to pay for it. Oh and I guess I should also thank you that I have a two story house and only the downstairs unit is broken so I could go upstairs to cool off if I want to.:) I was going to leave that one itty bitty piece of information out because the story of my sacrifice was so much better without it but it somehow it just seemed WRONG. haha

Be thankful for all things........

Blessings,
Linda

Snoring, Swollen face, and a Profound statement!!

Interesting week here. I have not been able to sleep because my dh has informed me that I snore and that I need to buy some nose strips of some sort to curtail this new annoying problem. I don't think it is new though, I just think he has been coming to bed later than me thanks to college basketball (especially the Memphis Tigers) which means I am falling asleep first and usually it is the other way around. Needless to say each time he lovingly pushes me to get me to stop snoring I am awake and it takes another hour for me to solve the world's problems before I can fall asleep. ( hehe) Then my sweet Lab's lips(if they have them?) were swollen, I noticed it at night and thought she would be fine but much to my dismay I woke up after a nudging from dh to find my dog's eyes were even swollen shut in fact her whole face looked like a balloon. YIKES! The emergency vet said I could give her benedryl I was so thankful for the information over the phone however, I did not have benedryl so off to the local neighborhood wal-mart to obtain the face normalizer for the dog, did I mention it was 3:30a.m.? Did it work you ask? No! She began doing weird stuff like getting in the bath tub (with no water) hiding under the bed and whinning. So off the the vet we were early this morning to find that she had a severe allergic reaction to something, was given some steroids, and now we are home. She is doing better for those who might actually care.(hehe) My middle one, Carson asked what she was allergic to. Funny question that will never be answered because this dog will eat anything from a plastic dinosaur head to power ranger arms and legs to a bar of soap and of course her normal dog food and anything she can find in the trash if she can get to it. So for now I will watch her every move as if I really needed anything else to add to my already busy schedule.

On a really sweet and very profound note, my 4yr old, Cameron told me on the way to school today that "the bad guys had to put Jesus on the cross" I asked him why he thought that and he very matter of factly replied "if they didn't then he couldn't come live in our heart". As I pondered the day I had to smile....with all the crazy, bizzare things that can occur in a day there really is only one thing that matters... Does Jesus live in your heart?

Have a great weekend.

Blessings,

Linda

A funny an award and a thought

My darling Cameron (4yrs old) was watching an episode of batman. My sweet husband had just come in from work and was making the rounds with each of the children and myself so he was trying to talk to Cameron and find out about his day. After a few minutes of trying to communicate with him he sweetly looked up at his dad and said "hey dad, let's play the quiet game" we both just cracked up.

I was plesantly surprised to find that Denise had given me

"The Daily Dose" award.

Xandra from Heart of Service created this award to honor those Blogs that are "must reads".
In her own words:
"So here's to all the blogs that you've discovered that you can't possibly live without. They make you laugh, cry, think and feel connected every time you read a post. They give you a thrill as you see them loading into your browser and you get an equally satisfying thrill when you see that they have commented on your blog."

I am truly humbled. When I write I never really think that what I say will impact or mean anything to anyone I just write about my family or what I am thinking or what God has taught me. Quite boring I would think but I love writing and love, love, love reading what everyone else has to say on their blogs. Thank you so much, Denise for thinking of me. I would like to pass this award on to my friend Christina, a homeschooling mom who loves the Lord and inspires me to "dig deeper", to my sister Sandy, the creative one in the family who also loves the Lord and who I want to be like when I grow up(even though I am older than her) and to Kelly, a new blog I have found written by a young woman who decorates beautifully, loves the Lord, and is on a journey to begin a family. There are so many more that I could list that I am inspired by on a daily basis as well that is the hard part about receiving an award... choosing whom to pass it on to.

I was driving and listening to our local Christian talk radio station the other day. I do not remember the exact show I was listening to. It may have been John MacArthur but again I am not sure, however, I heard something that I stopped and wrote down as soon as I was at a red light.

He said to guard your life against spiritual erosion. Erosion is slow, subtle, and silent. Wow! What a statement. When I am not guarded before I know it I have allowed things in my life that a year ago would never have even been a thought. Of course this is how Satan works. If robbing a bank is not your forte then he certainly won't hit you there. It could be something as simple as what we watch on T.V. I have to step back and ask myself are there shows that I watch today and find humorous that a year or two ago I would have been appalled at the mere existance of such trash? If so, than I have been deceived. Very slowly, but deceived none the less.

There is a verse in Genesis where the Lord is talking to Cain.

If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it. Genesis 4:7 .

I am constantly reminding myself of this verse... it(sin) desires to have me.. I am not going to give Satan too much credit here oh yes he is full of evil and the Father of all lies but I am to be guarded at all times and when I am not is when I am weak and fall into my own sinful pit of selfishness, self pity and discontentment. Not sure if I have made a bit of sense here but I do know I loved the erosion picture and am glad I heard it and wanted to share it.

I pray you all have a wonderful weekend in the Lord.

Blessings,

Linda

Ramblings

Kids really do say the cutest things!!! As I dropped Cameron off at his classroom today he quite loudly told his teachers that he brought a show and share item that was breakable and fragable. He keeps us all in stitches. He has even told us he had a girlfriend but she broke up with him and she did not tell him. He is 4! Me thinks he has been listening to one very moody teenager that happens to dwell amongst us. (hehe)


If your kids don't humble you when they are little never fret they are just waiting til they are a teen. I love my teen but the hardest part about raising him is the actual realization that I don't get a say in a lot of his day to day choices anymore you know like when they were little, using the red cup instead of the green one or wearing cowboy boots with shorts silly things like that or even the neat things like the innocence that comes with his belief in Christ. Just believing because he does and does not have the cares of the world weighing him down. Now there is so much weight on teens the hormones and the world around them that is doing it's very best to take Christ out of everything. The outer influences are so strong. It is a major reminder and wake up call that I really never had control God just let me believe I did for a while then he welcomed me to reality with the teen years. I know I have said it before but I so need to remind myself over and over that when anyone deserves to be loved the very least is when they need it the very most!!!(myself included) I do have to insert that sometimes hugging a teenager can be like hugging a cactus. hehe I borrowed that from a book title I have heard before.

Please, as the Lord leads, remember my mother in prayer, she took a bad fall on a train this past weekend, I also have a dear friend whose son, Clayton, has been admitted into the hospital for a problem with this foot, another friend whose husband will soon need a bone marrow transplant and of course don't forget Adam in Iraq.
I pray that this Christmas season has been a Christ centered one for all of you and if not I pray that you are able to refocus (as I have to do often, almost minute by minute) and make it all about the only one who deserves honor and glory.... Jesus Christ our Lord!
Blessings,

Linda

Happy Thanksgiving

As I was putting the turkey in the oven this morning, Cameron, my 4 yr old asked me if I went out and caught that turkey. I just laughed out loud. Then last night Carson and I were setting the table for today and I was out of napkins. He found some camouflage napkins left over from Cameron's birthday and insisted we use those. I quickly informed him that they did not match and we were not going to use them. He then replied that if we use those napkins we could not only celebrate Thanksgiving but we could celebrate Adam (my nephew) while he is at war. So you guessed it we are using camouflage napkins this Thanksgiving in honor of Adam who is in Iraq.



Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and may the Lord bless you and your families.

Blessings,

Linda

LORDY, LORDY, LOOK WHO'S FORTY!!!!

I can’t believe it is my sister, Sandy’s 40th birthday. She certainly does not look it but of course they are saying that 40 is the new 20, like brown is the new black. I don’t know who “THEY” are but I will take THEIR word for it since I am already a year into the 40’s decade myself. Anywho. I have inserted several pictures that are reminiscent of her life. The jeans logo cracks me up because I remember my mother saying she was not going to pay for designer jeans when she could buy some perfectly nice ones at a more realistic price. Well Sandy saved her money and bought those jeans. She was so proud. I was jealous because I could not fit in them way too small for me.
I also remember that she would forgo birthday cake and want a Lemon Merenge pie instead which was always yummy. She was a cheerleader in high school and one of the prettiest I might add. She was and still is very photogenic. She was voted most attractive by her classmates. As wonderful as she sounds in the past she is a totally different and better person now. She loves the Lord. She is creative. A very gifted artist. She is a wonderful mom and wife. I really believe she and her husband run one of the most organized homes I know. She brought a wonderful man into our family when she married Steven and they have three great boys. She loves people and teaching them to paint. I know it thrills her to see the success that so many of her students are having in her classes. She is a hands on mother. She does not know how to say no very easily so often times she has volunteered for way too many things that all seem to be due around the same time. She is a terrific bowler and she makes some awesome homemade crescent rolls. She is very dear to me and I love her very much. Sometimes she will remind me of something she did when she was younger and I don’t have any idea what she is talking about then I remember that in high school it was all about ME so I don’t remember a lot of went on with her or my other sweet sister, Debbie. Definetly a regret I will carry always. Sandy, I hope as you read this you know how much I love you and how truly blessed I feel to call you my sister. I hope you have a great day and welcome to a new decade
Love you,
Linda.

"Come on Lady are you for real?"

Just thought I'd let you see what my purchases were at the store the other night. It really makes no sense. I know the clerk thinks I will be lounging reading my WW magazine and snacking on all the candy but hey the drink is diet. Guess what??? He is pretty much right! I do share the candy with my family but I would be lying if I said it was all for them. I am really going to give this another shot. I have been very inspired by Diet coke & Zingers(love the name) She is doing a great job at reaching each of her goals. Go visit if you have a chance.
Blessings

Little people funnies

This is the sort of stuff we hear
around our home on a daily basis....
Cameron (3yrs)" Hey lets play good guy bad guy. I'll be Jesus, you be the guy who nailed me to the cross."
Carson (5yrs) " No you be the dog and I'll be the dog catcher.
Cameron Oh, okay.
They keep us on our toes, keep our faces smiling, and our hearts full.

Blessings

A Question and a Quote

We have been soooo extremely busy around here that I haven't had a chance to post since Sunday but I have of course made time to "blog lurk" or sometimes I feel like I am "blog stalking" anyway I probably would not have been sooooo busy if I took that little part of my last couple of days out.

Here is my question...
Does the pool count as a bath?

Here is my quote....
Raising Teenagers is like trying to nail Jello to a tree.

Having given this quote I must add that I adore my teen it's just, I never know who I am going to wake up to in the morning. His mood can be the best ever and 5 minutes later I am convinced that aliens invaded his body. :) Oh no!!! I just realized that this must be how my husband feels about me during a certain week out of the month, ouch! I better work on that, but back to teens. I have learned that if he wants to talk I better be ready because the first time I say no he won't come again. I have also learned, and really this applies to everyone. When they deserve to be loved the very least is when they need it the very most.(from Mom's bible study teacher, Jean) Chew on that for a minute and think when you might be having a really bad day and you have spoken unkindly to your husband don't you just really want a hug and someone to say it's gonna be all right?

It is a very interesting season of life I am in right now. I have a 3 yr old, a 5 yr old and 14 yr old. One starting K-5 and one starting High School. The little ones are so much fun but can keep me physically drained. The teen is so much fun but can keep me emotionally drained. Bottom line is I am drained and God has a keen sense of humor.. He is the only way I can make it through these days. :)

Blessings

Oh, Where is my Hairbrush???

If any of you have seen Veggie Tales you have heard Larry the cucumber sing the song, Oh, where is my hairbrush? I must tell you that my dh and I share a hairbrush. I don't know how it evolved into that but after I lost mine several years ago I took a liking to his and we have shared it ever since. The only time we have a problem with sharing a brush is when one of us travels. I hate to admit it but I am HIGH maintainence when it comes to my hair so we have made an unwritten rule that if he is traveling for soccer tournaments with my son he has to leave the brush because any brush will do when you will probably wear a hat any way. When he travels for work of course I want him to take the one he likes best so it goes with him and I make do. Well I have to shout a big Thank you to my darling husband!!!! He left last night for California on a business trip and guess what I found in the bathroom this morning? I am sure you guessed it.... the shared hairbrush. What a sacrifice!!!! I am serious we are both passionate about this old plastic blue hairbrush.(crazy huh) Some ladies need flowers and romancing not me... just leave me my brush. :) Thanks dh you're the best!!!

(hey, at least it's not a toothbrush!!)

On to a teeny weeny lighter note.... my goal of 3 pounds this week was not achieved in fact I was far from it. I only lost .4 and for a first week on any diet that is pretty lame. I thought I was doing so good but I totally forgot some really important things I ate like, almost 1/2 bag of carmels, some cake and a little sausage stuff, you got the picture. Irregardless, I am pleased with a loss and plan to be more aggressive in my journaling this week.

Blessings