Springtime Wednesday Hodgepodge



1. Sunday was the first day of spring. So they say. Ahem.
What is your favorite outdoor springtime activity?

Spring has sprung here and the weather is beautiful.  My favorite outdoor springtime activities include taking the kids to the park for a picnic and going to the beach. 

2. Who would you want to come into your kitchen to cook dinner for you?

Paula Deen, y'all.  She cooks some good ol' comfort food. 

3. When did you last fly a kite?
It would probably be last summer at the beach with the kids.  They don't make kites like they used to.  They tear up in the wind and aren't as sturdy.

4. What topic puts you to sleep faster than anything?

I hate to say it, but anything financial.  I'm not a figures kind of a girl, I just want all of the details to work out and for there to be money there when I need it.  That's bad, isn't it?

5. Which flowers do you associate with specific people, places, or events?

My mom's favorite flowers are daisies.  I always think of her when I see them.
Hubby's granny had beautiful azalea and camilias so I think of her when I see those.

6. What significant historical events took place during your elementary school days?
I had a fun time trying to remember things on my own, then I did a google search and found some more things.  Here's the list:

John Lennon was assassinated.
Ronald Regan was President.
US boycott of 1980 Olympics
Prince Charles and Lady Di were married.
The first space shuttle, Columbia launched when I was in kindergarten.  John Young and Bob Crippen were on that mission.
Assassination attempt on President Regan.
Sandra Day O'Connor became the first female Supreme Court Justice
Nancy Regan's "Just Say No to Drugs" Campaign was huge.
US bombing in Beirut.
Ghandi was assassinated.
Discovery of AIDS
Space shuttle Challenger exploded.

7. Do you swear? Do you pseudo-swear? (You know crap, shoot, friggin'?)

Why did you have to ask this question?  Can I plead the 5th Amendment?  OK, so here's the deal.  I try very hard not to swear.  I have small children, I work with small children and I just plain old don't think it sounds lady like or is Christ-like behavior.  I do on ocassion slip up and say things I shouldn't say. 
Do I pseudo-swear? As in using substitutions?  It depends on the word.  I'm not particularly fond of anything that sounds like the "f" word, friggin' included so that one I don't use.  I do say shoot and crap even though I don't like the word crap.  I'm a work in progress and this is something I have felt strongly about and am working to change.  I have really gotten into the mode of saying "Oh my goodness" or "Oh my heavens" more because around little ears you have to be so careful.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Today is the first day in over a week that both kids have been back to school after being sick.  We are still doing nebulizer treatments and antibiotics with Prince and eye drops and allergy meds with Princess, but I am really hoping they are on the upswing.  Now I have started feeling run down.  I'm trying to rest and keep myself from getting any worse.  At least next week is Spring Break.  Wahoo!!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Princess and Prince have been battling some kind of virus this last week, which has kept me quite busy to say the least.  It is no fun for anyone to be sick, but I do feel badly when my kids are sick and there isn't much I can do for them except for try to make them as comfortable as possible.  I woke up with it at 4:00 this morning.  It was NOT fun.  My body is still trying to recover from it. 

In spite of that, today was a very special day because it is my mom's birthday.  My mom has always made our birthdays special and I wanted to do the same for her.  She decided that for her birthday she wanted to take all of us to an afternoon movie.  We went to see Mars Needs Moms, which was pretty good, but a little intense in places for our little guys.  Afterward we went back to her house and my sister and I made her favorite homemade pizza, bruschetta, and salad.  I bought some extras for the salad to make it special with mozzarella balls, sun-dried tomatoes and made homemade bleu cheese dressing.  It was a nice gathering and we celebrated this woman who has for many years given so much of herself.

My mom always made our birthday cakes and she would stay up until all hours of the night making sure things were just perfect the night before our birthday.  She is the person that took care of us, took time with us, and was so very patient helping with homework, making up little rhymes and songs to help us remember things.  As most kids do, I took so much of this for granted.  I just thought that's what all moms did and I came to expect it.  I also never thought about the time, energy and heart my mom has put into things.  Now that I am a mom, I look at what she did in awe.  I try to do all of the same things for my kids, although I have to admit that I have bought cupcakes a few times from the grocery store instead of making them like she always did.  My mom is the one person I have always wanted to be most like, to be able to do all of the things she did for us, and I constantly feel that I don't measure up to that standard.  She never got as far behind on the laundry as I do.  She stayed up and late and got things done.  I try to stay up but then end up falling asleep.  She always had some sort of green veggie on the dinner table.  There have been a few times that I just didn't open that can of peas or steam that broccoli.  I know my mom isn't perfect, but she's the standard by which I live in whether I am a successful mom.  I hope that when my kids grow up they will think the same of me.  I hope they will think I invested in them, believed in them, took great care to make them feel as special as my mom has done of all these things for me...and she continues to do these things for me.  My mom is a beautiful lady and when I grow up, I want to be like her.

Happy Birthday Mom!  I love you and hope you had a fantastic day. 

Remembering the Wedding ~ 9 Years Later

In honor of our 9th Wedding Anniversary, I wanted to share some wedding pictures of Hubby and I.  I love looking back at the old pictures and remember this special day.  But before I share the wedding pics, here are a couple of oldies but goodies.  Hubby and I have been friends since 7th grade.  Our first official date was to the homecoming dance our freshman year of highschool.

With my hairdo and all, I was actually taller than him!

We were kind of on again, off again in school.  We went to homecoming again our junior year.

He grew!

OK, so here are the pictures from 9 years ago today.  It was a magical day! 

My handsome Hubby!

Me and my girls!

My beautiful sister was my matron of honor.

The wedding day was perfect.  I can still see the sanctuary full of smiling faces and my daddy walked me down the aisle, the smile on Hubby's face as he waited for me to get to him.  I can hear the pastor's voice as he spoke.  He was the pastor from my childhood, and he came back to marry me off.  The organist was our organist when I was in high school and she and I were so close.  People joked that I brought back the "All-stars" to come do my wedding.  I guess I did.  My friends and family were there as Hubby and I were served communion, our first official act as husband and wife.  I can still see the candle lit church at the end of the ceremony as everyone in the sanctuary held up lit candles and sang "Blest Be the Tie That Binds."  The reception was great fun as we ate and danced and visited with the 300 guests that came to celebrate with us.  It really was a grand day.  I wanted the Princess, Fairy Tale wedding and I got it.  I also realize though, that the wedding is one day out of a lifetime together. I knew that being married would be great, I just never knew how much fun we'd have together.  The last 9 years have been the best of my life and I couldn't imagine spending them with anyone else. 

The scriptures and theme for our wedding was from Ecclesiastes 4:9-12:

 Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work. If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?  Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

This marriage takes 3 ~ Hubby, God, and me.  God is at the center of everything in our lives.  I can't imagine it any other way.  We've had some bumpy times with my health, the issues we had when the babies arrived, and just other life happenings.  Had we not had that strong cord of three strands, I'm not sure how we would have survived. 

Next year we will celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary and our 25th anniversary of being friends.  Time really flies when you are having fun! 

And they lived happily ever after...

Cornedbeef and Hodgepodge

It's Hodgepodge Wednesday again!  Go see Joyce at FromFrom This Side of the Pond and link up and play along.  It's fun and you'll be glad you did!

1. What would you do if you found a pot of gold? Let's pretend this pot of gold is worth exactly $1500 (which would actually be more like a cup of gold at current values). Anyway, let's also pretend you have to spend it as opposed to making a donation someplace. Now tell me what you would do with that cup pot of gold?

I hate to say it, but that $1500 would go to pay off some bills.  Hubby just got a new/used car and we'd probably put it toward that.

2. Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day in any way, shape, or form?
I wear green to avoid being pinched, but other than that, we don't really celebrate St. Patrick's Day.  However, this is a busy week for birthdays and anniversaries in our family, so we do our fair share of celebrating this week.

3. Have you been bitten by the Spring Cleaning bug? What spring cleaning job most needs doing at your house? What spring cleaning job are you most dreading?
Yes, I have been bitten by the bug and I need to act fast, before I lose motivation.  I want to get rid of stuff...we have lots of stuff and I am tired of looking at stuff.  What needs to be done most is our bedroom and it is at the top of the list.  It is also the job I am most dreading, but I know the results will be wonderful when we are done.  By we, I mostly mean me, but Hubby will do the heavy lifting.

4. lime-shamrock-sage-forest...your favorite shade of green?
I love green.  It happens to be a tie for my favorite color ~ green and purple are the top two.  My favorite shade of green is sage.

5. Thomas Jefferson once said, "I'm a great believer in luck, and I find the harder I work, the more I have of it." So...do you believe in luck or do you believe we make our own luck?
I don't really believe in luck.  I do believe in hard work and I believe that God is in control and He causes things to happen for a reason.  Things we might see as lucky are really blessings.

6. Monday (3/14) was Pi Day. Get it? Pi =3.14. Those math types are so clever aren't they? Since I'm not one of them tell me what's your favorite piE (the edible kind).

Oh so many to choose from!  My favorite two are French Silk and Cheesecake. 

Last night I bought a key lime pie for Hubby and I to celebrate Pi Day.  It was yummy!

7. That same date (3/14) happens to be the birthdate of the late physicist Albert Einstein. I bet he knew the value of Pi. So...what do you think is more important and or valuable in life... intelligence or common sense?
A combination of the two.  However, if I have to choose just one, I choose common sense over intelligence.  I have known some extremely intelligent people without a lick of common sense and I don't know how they get along in the world!

8. Insert your own random thought here.
Here's a completely random thought...Last Wednesday we took the kids to Ash Wednesday Service.  Prince started talking to the people behind us, an older couple.  He then starts telling the lady knock-knock jokes and she played along.  Before I know it, I hear him say, "Knock-knock."
"Who's there?"
"Urp."
"Urp who?"
Before I knew what was happening, as if in slow motion, Prince makes himself belch.  Lovely.  I was mortified and apologized for his rudeness.  Luckily she kind of chuckled and said something about boys being boys, but really?!  Having a little boy is giving me quite the education.  I only had a sister growing up so I had no idea about such things.  Sure, we had our share of burping contests, but would never dream of doing so in church to a little old lady. 
He's cute and all, but how does that little brain think of these things?

Conversations with Princess

This afternoon while I was folding clothes, Princess informed me that she now knows what she wants to be when she grows up.  She says she wants to be a missionary.  I asked her what she thinks a missionary would do and she said that she would go to other countries around the world and help people and tell them about Jesus.  I said, "Wow, that's very good.  So you think that's what you want to do when you grow up?" 
She said, "Yes Mommy, there are lots of people in this world that don't have Jesus in their hearts and they need to know that he loves them and he wants them to be Christians.  And I'm also going to have a sidekick." 
Me: A sidekick?
Princess: Yes, he's going to be a dog and I am going to take him wherever I go and people will be happy to see the dog and they can pet him and love on him.  Also he will save people from snakes or other bad things that might come after them.  He will be a super missionary dog. 
Me:  That sounds great. 
Princess: I might have another job too, but I don't know what I will want to do or if God will let me have another job too.
Me:  Well, lots of missionaries are nurses and teachers and preachers. 
Princess: How will I know if God would like for me to do one of these things too?
Me:  When you have a heart for God, He will let you know what He wants you to do because He will give you special talents and interests in that area.  Everyone has a calling or a special plan from God.  You'll know and you've got lots of time to figure that out.
Princess:  I just want to make God happy and I want for other people to know that Jesus loves them and that if Jesus is in their heart then they will want to do what is right and they won't make bad choices like stealing and have to go to jail.
Me: You know you can do anything you put your mind to, but you don't have to go to other countries to tell other people about Jesus.
Princess: I know, but that's what I think God wants me to do. 

Can I just say WOW?!  I had no idea that all of that was circling around in that little brain of hers.  She's 6 years old!  I am so amazed at how God can use my children even now to talk to others about Him and His love.  Her understanding of things that are so complicated baffles me.  Thank you God for this precious child and that she has a heart for You!

The Anniversary Trip

Yesterday I promised you the story of our anniversary weekend.  Let me first remind you of how awesome my Hubby is.  We know he is awesome because he has a shirt that tells us so.

He is also awesome for other reasons too, and I am about to tell you one of the reasons I think he is so awesome. 

Around the end of January Hubby asked me if I thought my parents would watch the kiddos for a weekend around our anniversary.  My parents agreed that it would be fine, and Hubby began making secret plans.  So I have been in suspense for several weeks.  Around the beginning of last week Hubby asked if I wanted him to tell me where we were going.  After waiting all of this long, I decided that being surprised would be a great thing.  It wasn't easy for me, being such a planner and all, but I knew Hubby had plans and he had it all under control.  Throughout the week he threw me a few hints, telling me we were not going far and that I would need dress-up clothes for Saturday.  On Wedensday he really threw me for a loop when he told me he needed to know what shoes I was going to wear.  Huh?!  So I tried on a couple of dresses and we decided what dress and shoes I would wear to wherever it was we were going.  I couldn't figure out why it mattered what shoes I was going to wear.

Friday evening we left the kids with my parents and off we went.  On our way in the car, Hubby told me that we were going to Orlando for the weekend.  Friday night's dinner was up to me, as he wanted me to have some choice about what we did.  After dinner we went back to the hotel and exchanged gifts.  Hubby bought me a beautiful pearl and jade necklace and earrings and a new dress.  This was why he wanted to know what shoes I was wearing!  He wanted my shoes to match my new dress.  He picked out a beautiful dress, the problem was that it didn't fit like I wanted it to.  It was too short for my taste and well, I have too much junk in the trunk to pull it off.  But it was such a thoughtful thing to do!  He might have also bought me a pretty nightie that is also comfortable.  He also brought me a rose in a little bud vase, champagne and champagne glasses, and his i-pod and speakers.

Saturday morning Hubby decided it was time to tell me of the plans he had made.  We had the morning free to take my new dress back to the store and I tried on lots of other clothes he picked out for me and I got two toher dresses for the same price of the original dress.  What a deal! 
The big surprise was...wait for it...

tickets to see Wicked!  I was so excited! 

This was a picture I took of us before we left the hotel.  I think we cleaned up pretty good.

The play was fantastical, I absolutely loved it!  At intermission Hubby bought me a CD of it.

This is Hubby waiting in line to buy my CD.

After the show, Hubby had made reservations for us to eat at Texas de Brazil, a Brazilian steakhouse that is oh so delicious.  When you go there, you don't eat all day before going because you want to save all the room you can.  They have a huge salad bar with lots of exotic salads and cheeses on it.  Then they have these gauchos that walk around with different cuts of meat on long skewers and they keep putting different kinds of meat on your plate.  It's all you can eat and they serve it with mashed potatoes and bananas that have been baked in brown sugar and cinnamon but they aren't soggy...oh, it is just all too delicious.  It's also quite costly, so you go for really special ocassions.  We have only been one other time. 

Yesterday morning we checked out and shopped a little before going home.  Hubby indulged me by watching me try on more clothes and he might have bought me a few more outfits.  It was such a nice and relaxing weekend away.  We spent time praying together that God would direct our paths and continue to be the center of our family, that we would parent according to His will. We told each other all of the things we love about the other.  I felt totally pampered and I love my amazing Hubby so much!  It was a treat for the two of us to be able to talk without interruptions and to enjoy being alone together.   And coming back home was a joy because I felt refreshed and renewed.  I wonder what we'll do next year for our 10th anniversary?!  We'll have a hard time topping this one!



Recent Happenings

We have had quite an eventful past several days, which is why I haven't been on to write lately.

1.  Princess lost 3 teeth last week!  She is really keeping the tooth fairy busy.  For the first two teeth, she paid her brother to pull them out for her.  She conned my sister into pulling her third tooth out on Friday afternoon.  This meant that the tooth fairy had to come to the Grandparents' house, which I was trying to avoid, but that's the way it happened.

2.  On Thursday night we went to see Space Shuttle Endeavour roll out from the VAB to the launch pad.  She was quite beautiful under the spotlights.  I will miss these times.

I also met up with some cute little future astronauts.  They were so cute that I decided to bring them home with me.

3.  Hubby took me away for a surprise anniversary trip this weekend.  I was busy getting children packed and ready to spend the weekend at Grandma and Grandaddy's, as well as getting myself packed without knowing exactly where we were going or what we'd be doing.  Hubby did a fantastic job planning our weekend away and I can't wait to tell you all about it...tomorrow!  Today I have to get through some laundry and get us organized and ready to start the week.