Slipping and Sliding on a Sunny Sunday

We are trying to every week have a Sabbath, a day of fun and rest (no cooking, cleaning, or working).  Today we were out of ideas for fun, and we had rested plenty.  We had a spark of inspiration.  What if we tried to make a slide with the black plastic from our basement project?
With a few snips, we had an extremely fun afternoon sliding down our sloped front yard!
Clark's favorite ride: DADDY!

They overshot the end and went into the grass!

Joel was a little hesitant, but he was happy to go with Mommy!  Then he was hooked!

Surprise landing--Clark would wait till the end and jump on my back as we slid down.

Awwwwww! Clark was serious about his slipping and sliding!

Playing in the Rain

I think yesterday was the first time that the boys got to play in the rain.  It was a perfect rain.  No thunder or lightning.  It was just a light warm steady drizzle.

Cowboy Joel

"Look, Mommy, I'm a robot!"

Our Expensive Summer "Vacation"

It's not Disney World, the beach, or even fancy resturant, but....it is a very unique, magical, and costly moment at our house today.  We are having new septic lines put in this morning.  I decided to celebrate.  It's not everyday that a little boy gets to see and hear a backhoe in his backyard.  The boys are enamored by the sounds of this machine.  And I have to say it IS very interesting. 

I am strangely at peace with the fact that this fascinating machine will lead to an almost empty bank account.  On top of the basement problem last month, our house has sucked us dry monetarily. We have had nearly $4000 of unexpected house costs lately. 

Sure, I would rather watch my kids hugging a Disney character or splashing on the beach, but God had other plans.  Maybe our plumber needed the money, and this is God's way of taking care of him.

wink wink

  

 Instead, we'll just be hanging around the house enjoying our potties, sinks, washing machines, and showers in a new way.

Thank you God for providing the money and our working plumbing!!!

And thank you, God, for the peace and laughter today that only could come from You!

Box Fan + Sheet = Fun!!!

This picture makes me want to kiss those chubby cheeks.  I just wish it wasn't blurry!

The past weeks have been rather hot, so we have been looking for ways to have fun indoors.  Michael taught us this new trick which the kids and I love.  Turn a fan on, and put a sheet over it.  It is cool because of the fan.  It drowns out all the screaming because of the white noise of the fan.   And they play forever under the tent. 

Clark's Version of a Patriot's Pee Pee Dance

Yesterday, my family and my friend and her family attended a horse show fundraiser in Dayton, TN.  It's was scalding hot, and my boys were red as chili peppers as they ran around chasing new friends on their stick horses.  The show was about to start, so we all stood for the National Anthem.  With my hand on my heart and attention on the flag, I took a second to check on my kids.  After all I'm a mother first, and then I'm American.  Well my heart soared as I noticed Clark swaying to the patriotic music.  My first thought was, "Look at him getting into our nation's anthem."  Then my mother radar started going off with all those loud whistles and alarms.  Something is not right here it screamed at me.  I leaned forward and saw it.

Clark was swaying to the music all right.  His head was down as he watching his urine sway to the beat as he peed while fully exposed to the world.  He was enjoying this new found skill of dancing and peeing at the same time.

Completely embarrassed and praying no one saw it, I pulled his pants up midstream.  And whispered as tough as I could while choking back laughter, "You stop that right now.   You go pee pee in the bathroom." 

Clark went home in wet pants unfortunately.  And I went home laughing every time I thought of Clark's first National Anthem experience. 

God Bless America

Summer Vacation 2000+miles in the car and good memories to cherish

We took our summer vacation a little early this year.  Our niece was getting married, so we combined the wedding and a vacation into one trip.

Here are the boys going over the mountains and through the woods to Grandma's house we go.  They are fabulous in the car especially when you give them milkshakes.

We had so much fun with Grandma and PawPaw.  We forget all the rules and go wild on vacation.  Joel learned his favorite word, "cookie" at Grandma's house.  I think they had cookies for breakfast for many of the days on vacation.  And now he asks for cookies everytime he's hungry.

Michael and his family used to go creek walking, but they haven't been in years.  Well we found a creek and had a blast walking in it and splashing.  The boys dug in the sand and rocks and had fun getting wet.

Then we decided to head to the Gulf of Mexico for a mini vacation with Grandma and PawPaw. The boys got to play on the beach.

We stopped at Blowfly Inn and had a yummy seafood dinner!

Here we are rushing to have fun before a big storm comes.  Thunder and lightning ran us off the beach.

Then after the beach, we headed back to Grandma's to play with family.  Clark and Hannah loved playing together and were hilariously silly.  It's amazing how fast they adjust to each other even after six months of being apart. 

When it was time to leave, Clark actually cried and got very blue for a few hours.  Here are the boys on the way home.  Now that we are back, Clark has declared that everything is from Grandma, and Grandma has made all his toys, clothes, and possessions.  He even stops people in the stores to tell them that his grandma makes him things.

It's Been Three Years????

This month marks our third year in Tennessee and our third year in our home that we lovingly refer to as the "Money Pit".  It is a house we thought was a dream house which has turned into something else entirely.

This house has kept us busy with projects.  Most we have done ourselves.   Here's a list of some of the projects we've done.  Unfortunately most have been repairs (in red) not upgrades.  I can say that we have been able to do all this and afford it by God's resources only.   He has provided over and over at the perfect time with the money, energy, and patient children.  Here's what we have been up to for the past three years.

• tile kitchen floor
• replace flooring in bathroom and laundry due to rips
• paint almost every room
•  repair, and replace enormous deck
• cut down and chop up two 150 year old oaks
• replace roof, siding, and gutters
• replace broken patio door
• reseal driveway with blacktop
• repair fireplace after tree fell and broke chimney
• dig up septic tank and repair it
• have new septic lines put in
• replace insulation in basement
• reseal and moisture control the basement
• replace old plumbing
• update and repair electrical wiring and fixtures
• replace three broken ceiling fans
• install more cabinets
• install built in microwave
• put in some plants in front gardens
• and the list could go on and on and on
•  

Here's our most recent repair.  We're down in the crawl space basement working on cleaning, moisture control, and replacing insulation.  FUN! FUN!  (not really)

 It's been hard and challenging and stressful, but I trust God is growing us and challenging us for His Good Purpose.  I eagerly wait to see the fruit of His work.

Happy Father's Day Craft

I don't have the time or money to be crafty, but I can't deny that I am a crafter by heart.  I saw my inspiration the other day on a blog.  I got so excited about making a present for Michael that I couldn't even sleep the night before.  This is a craft the boys helped me by painting on the Mod Podge. It's a medium sized tile and scrapbook paper.  It cost under a $1.00.  I made an extra for my little guy I nanny.

Enough about crafts, and on to the more important topic.  Michael is a great dad.  He always involves his boys in whatever he is doing.  He lets them "help" in his jobs around the house.  He is patient, playful, and loving every second with them.  He desires to teach them so much about life.  He wants to pour out so much of himself to them.  He reminds me of what Jesus said about how our earthly fathers give us so much, and he compares that to our Heavenly Father.  Michael is that father who would give everything to make his children happy and safe.  I am so proud of Michael.   And I am so thankful my children have him as their daddy.

Happy 11th Anniversary to US!

I remember thinking not too long ago, "Only old people have been married more than 10 years."  So I guess I'm admiting I'm old, but not really.  We are celebrating our 11th this weekend.  We went to the Chattanooga Choo Choo Dinner in the Dinner on Friday night.  Thanks to Corrina watching our kids!

We had a peaceful, elegant dinner.  It was lovely. We even dressed up.  I felt like I was a grown up for sure!  We used resturants.com coupon, AND we got a free dessert because it was our anniversary. It was worth every penny!

I have seen how marriage is a little like a roller coaster just as life seems to be for me.  We have our ups and downs, but we hold on tight to each other.  I love my husband and my marriage.  It humbles me that God gave me a man that loves me no matter what.  I don't deserve him, and I pray I live every day loving him and making him feel all my appreciation.

A Little Taste of Summer

Today reached 90 degrees here.  Ooh wee that's hot, baby! 

So the boys stripped off their clothes and splished and splashed in our water table.  (The extra is Winston the boy I watch 10.5 hours a day.)  He's one of the family, and he and Joel are best friends.

Then we went for a ride around the neighborhood.

Clark is "adjusting" to his new bike.  (He hates it and prefers his tricycle.)

One thing is for sure, Clark LOVES running.  Hooray, maybe I'll have a running partner!

Daddy was working really hard on teaching Clark how to use the brakes.