to My In-Laws

I've heard stories of the 9 long months that you carried your then nearly 9 pound bundle of joy.  Thank you for going through months of dehydration, sickness, hospital stays and days upon days away from his older brother and sister...in order to keep him safely developing strong and healthy.  Thank you for perservering and having his best interest in mind.

Thank you for showing him how to treat a wife...for being spontaneous and fun...for washing dishes and ironing clothes.  Thank you for teaching him how to have a servant's heart...he was watching and saving it all up in his heart as a little boy.

Thank you for teaching him the value of a dollar...how to never take things for granted and always show appreciation.  Thank you for showing him how to be generous, even at your own personal expense.  He was watching and calculating his spreadsheets even then:)

Thank you for demonstrating a solid work ethic...where Saturdays weren't necessarily always sleep in days, but days to help with family chores with a good attitude.  Thank you for being an example of someone who after working hard, didn't just sit down and say you were too tired to do anything else, but continued to put family first...thank you for playing with him and showing him that he was loved...he was watching and it built his confidence.

Thank you for giving him a home where he knew he was safe and loved...thank you for choosing to add to your family, that last little Italian Bambino:)

I am forever grateful for the son you bore and raised:)  Today, on the day we celebrate that birth, I want to thank you:)  He continues to be my dream come true...

Mother's Day...

Peanut:  "Mommy, can I use your phone?"

Me: "Sweetheart, I have no idea where my phone is...goodness, let me just sit here for a second...I just got done scrubbing Little Munchkin down with all the hot water left in the tank because she got into what I think was poison ivy..." (insert long sigh and putting my feet up by the fire around the fire pit)

Peanut: "Mommy, I can't find it...can we call it?"

Me: "Sure babe"

Peanut: "What's your number?"

Daddy: "Here, just use my phone to call it..."

Peanut proceeds to get daddy's phone and bring it to me to dial my own number...

A ring tone begins to go off...Peanut is in the house searching for MY ringtone...she's got NOTHIN'...

The "ring" is now coming from Italian Stallion's shorts pocket...

Daddy: "Oh, look (as he pulls said ringer out of his pocket)  it's your phone?"
Me: "Um, that's not my phone...it's not even the right ringer...don't you even know my phone by now?"

Daddy:  "YES, it IS YOUR PHONE!"

Me: "Huh?...wait, is that an iphone...as in, it's mine?  You got me one?  like to keep?"

Daddy: "Settle down or you're going to drop it!"

So there you have it folks...I have an iphone...I've already been ridiculed galore over my choice of a hot pink case to contrast my white phone...but I couldnt' be happier:)  What an incredible surprise and such fun!  And all this amidst a broken tractor, a purple party, soccer games, family in town...a delicious lasagna dinner and some sweet cards from all my girls:) 

LOVIN' IT!

Purple Party

As I mentioned earlier...my little Peanut turned 8 years old last week...

Being the organized mother that I am, I had all my invitations sent out early...

YEP...about 3 days  before the party "early"...

Let's just say, it's a good thing it's May and people are home because noone is going to go on vacation that last month before the end of the school year...especially when you have cool field trips and stuff...right?

yes, well...fortunately, we invited so many people that the handful that were able to come made it a smashing success:)

She wanted a PURPLE PARTY...She comes up with this stuff on her own and I just try to roll with it:)

So, out I went for purple balloons, purple plates, purple cups, purple t-shirts, and even purple pop:)



The day started out with soccer games and lots of pictures...it then led to scrambling home as quickly as possible in order to get everything ready before the little 2nd graders all showed up at our house...Did I mention field trips before?  Because I would be remiss if I didn't "begin" the storytelling of the weekend by mentioning the fact that I spent some considerable amount of time on a bus with a bunch of 2nd graders yelling for me to teach them more camp songs, of which my nearly 40 year old brain brain had trouble conjuring up amidst the bodily function noises and other such "fun" experiences enjoyed by sweet 8-9 year olds on a field trip bus:) 

Anyhoo...

The little girls all came in their purple clothing and we quickly got to the nail polish, face painting and girly hair clips:)

I think Peanut just enjoys seeing other people happy...she doesn't worry so much about being the center of attention, she just wants to soak in the time and make sure that everyone else does the same...oh my, she's so much like her daddy in that way!

She loved her purple/chocolate covered strawberries and purple cake

It wasn't my "best work", but we managed...(let us remember "smelly bus ride" the day before...therefore, a tad of a tired mama)

All in all it was great fun and I'm so unbelievably grateful that God has given me this sweet girl to care for...I pray He lets me do it for a longgggggggggggggg time to come as well....She is well worth it!

p.s. The evening ended with a poison ivy scare and a Mother's Day gift that was completely unexpected:)  stay tuned...

EIGHT YEARS

It's been 8 years since Peanut decided she had had enough time cooking in my belly:)  She was my only early bird...(the other two came late)

I remember the moment the doctor caught her and smiled, "It's a girl"...to which I replied, "Are you sure...you might want to check again."...I couldn't be THAT maternally inept could I?  I thought each and every one of my girls were boys...and I was wrong every time...

and I wouldn't change a thing!

I remember the moment the pediatrician came in to inform me that they discovered a hole in her heart and I remember holding her and telling God that I was NOT as strong as MY mother and I could not go through the whole "heart" thing again...and I remember spending the first 3 weeks or so at Children's Hospital having test upon test done on my little Peanut...and then a little after her 2 year birthday, the doctor said that they couldn't hear it anymore and that it had closed on it's own...(I know that may be typical for some, but after watching my little sister, I was in panic mode for quite awhile)

Right from the start she was different than her sisters...and that still hasn't changed...

She's always been my spunky one...the one that will climb to the top of a tree and scare me to death...the one that will hold onto a soccer ball for dear life and have battle wounds to show for it...

She's my quiet, introvert that is a seriously deep thinker...and yet, when you are fortunate enough to be let in on her thoughts and feelings you are nearly knocked over by the enormity of her ability to feel and empathize and just LOVE.

She's very much like her daddy...(which is probably why we get along so well)  She makes us all laugh...she's insightful and carefree...she has the unique ability to see the bigger picture and not get so caught up in all the details...

Happy Birthday Sweet Peanut!!!

Oh sweet girl...your Momma loves you so much...I am so incredibly thankful that I get to be your Mom and I pray that God gives me many, many, many, many, many more years of growing with you:)

My husband is awesome...and...well, I'm not THAT bad either...

as it relates to gettin' stuff done around here:)

This weekend has been a "work" weekend...and our weekend started on Friday...

which is why I am JUST NOW writing up a post about it all...

Italian Stallion worked his tail off all day Friday...weeding the and trimming down the front flower bed, which is HUGE, let me remind you...and then, after coaching in the humid heat and mud puddled fields, he came home and worked 4 hours straight shoveling the mulch into place...I believe he just downed 4 ibuprofen...

We've got stuff growing all over the place here..it just gets me in the springtime mood and dreaming of summer:)

Not to be outdone, I spent Friday afternoon weeding the rest of the garden beds, taking a trip to the nursery, and coming back and planting the rest of the garden...no waiting until Mother's Day this year...we're just going to pray a "no frost" from here on out...

love my lettuces:)

Potatoes are coming up just fine:)

In case you want to know where everything is planted:)

I even purchased a few annuals this year for the front porch:)

After a fun newborn photo shoot this afternoon, I came home to take pictures of everything and enjoy th evening with the family...I.S. split some wood and we warmed our feet by the fire in anticipation of the Super Moon tonight:)

All in all...besides the fact that the inside of my house looks like it exploded...the outside is amazing and I'm feeling like a very blessed woman:)

Why YES, I AM crazy..thank you:)

Why is it that during the "slow season", the winter down time, the time when all I really need to do is sit with a nice, hot cup of tea and a book and let the hours slip by...why is it, that during THAT time, when I HAVE time, I don't think of many fun projects...

HOWEVER, once soccer season starts...once all we want to do is play outside...once housework seems to pile up due to umpteen changes of clothing during the day and multiple "game" switches take place..

it's at THESE times that my brain can't shut off...

So far, I've started about 4 Shutterfly scrapbooks online...have begun planning my younger two girls' birthday parties...and I'm getting booked up with photography sessions left and right...not to mention multiple fields trips and concerts that are approaching before the month of May is finished.

To top it off...my ubber creative neighbor (whom I'm beginning to think is as crazy as I am) came up with a FUN idea for our little preschool girls...She went out and bought 1 pound of yellow yarn for Little Munchkin and her blond hair and 1 pound of brown yard for her little brown headed girl...along with lots of flowers and ribbons and sparkles...

well...this is what we came up with:)

It ended up being just a tad more time consuming than we had originally thought, but nothing an ice cream cone at 10pm couldn't fix:) 

It was a bit funny though because we both made our "braid wig" in different ways.  I didn't want to do any needle/sewing work, so I have a lot of tying and knots in mine.  She's much more handy with a needle, so hers has a more polished look:)  I'll try to post some pictures of hers later today.

Little Munchkin was ecstatic this morning when she saw it hanging by the door.  It's so long that I put a little loop in it so that she could carry it at one side if she wants to.

Ahhhh...projects:)