Thank You!

It is the
VETERAN,
not the preacher,
who has given us freedom of religion.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the campus organizer,
who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is
the VETERAN,
not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.


It is
the VETERAN,
not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.





It is the
VETERAN who
salutes the Flag,



It is
the
VETERAN
who serves
under the Flag,


ETERNAL
REST GRANT THEM O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON
THEM.

God
Bless them all!!!

I got this email last week and it was a good reminder of all we have to be thankful for!

Happy Memorial Day!

Blessings in Disguise!

I'm on a new mission.

I'm am really trying hard to let go of all the small "stuff" that doesn't matter through out my day. You know, all those little annoyances that the "other" people in the house do. (I'm sure I don't do anything to annoy them!)

I've decided to watch and observe and try to turn all those little things into something good!

Little things like this....

My wonderful husband answered the phone the other night in our bedroom. He grabbed the phone, looked at the caller id, realized it was a telemarketer and quickly hung up the phone.

Does anyone see the problem? We all know that I have a type-A personality....but really. Is it that hard to put the phone back on the base/charger/thingy! I'm mean come on....but instead of this getting on my very.last.nerve., I'm choosing to see this as a blessing. At least my wonderful hubby was upstairs in our room chatting with me after the kiddos were in bed. And at least he didn't answer and "talk" to the telemarketer like he used to. See...a blessing in disguise.

Here's another one...

Gross...I know! One of the bathroom sinks. I can't tell you how much this frustrates me. I can clean that sink out ...and the very! next! second!...it looks like this. Oh, and this is actually a good picture, usually there is a weeks worth of kids toothpaste (from just one squeeze)...all blue and positioned in a nice glob right there on the side. But again, I'm trying to see this as a blessing in disguise. First, the obvious, at least my kids have teeth. At least they are able to brush their teeth on their own, without my supervision. And at least they are using toothpaste. Even if more of it goes down the drain than in their mouths.

So you get the idea...right?!

Some days might be harder than others to find the little blessings...but I'm determined to let go of all the little stuff that annoys me and turn it around into the blessing it's supposed to be.

Schools out....

Maggie had her last day of school yesterday....well actually it was just an hour of school. She said goodbye to her friends and her ♥favorite♥ first grade teacher.

After that hour of school, we headed right to the public library...and a little man in my house got his very first library card. I think it's a good way to learn responsibility and having their own card makes it seem more important and also makes it more fun!

Then we headed to pick up a few things at the grocery store...and that's when it started. The togetherness. The bickering. The driving-me-nuts part of the day. I think it's going to take us a few days to get back in the swing of being together ALL.DAY.LONG!

But...it's going to be a great summer and I can't wait to enjoy it with my favorite people!

Planting Seeds!

Max was able to help Papa plant the garden this year. They planted corn, watermelon, carrots, green beans, peppers, onions, zucchini, radishes, tomatoes, & cucumbers. I can't wait to eat all that yummy stuff.

But what's even more special to me, is the time they get to share and the "seeds" Papa is planting in Max. Thanks for all you do Papa! We love you!

Party Pics!

So, the weather didn't cooperate, but I think the girls had a good time. What else can you do on a rainy Thursday afternoon....dancing, eating cake from an ice cream cone, beating a pinata, making bracelets with beads and making sundaes sure beats doing homework right after school. Right?!

Quincy & Maggie

Ashlyn & Maggie

Isabel & Maggie

Lena & Maggie

Callie & Maggie

Allison & Maggie

Autumn & Maggie

Thanks for coming and sharing Maggie's birthday with her...she had a great time!

Party Prep!

Tomorrow afternoon, after school is out, Maggie finally gets to have her little "friend" birthday party. It won't be much, but I think just having a few girls over after school will be fun. We did an ice cream themed party this year...thanks to Aunt Janelle who we stole the idea from.

I found an ice cream cone pinata that Mags is really excited about. She keeps telling me, "now I get to be the first one to hit it right?!" Right you are Magpie...but let the others get a chance too.

I also found these cute little ice cream cups, so we'll have all the fixin' for make-you-own-sundaes! (I'm a little too excited about that part!)

Then I made these ice cream cone goodie bags. I know they aren't the cutest thing ever, but Maggie likes them and I think they kinda cute too. It's a real ice cream cone that has a little ring stamper, lip gloss, a coupon for a real ice cream cone at DQ and a new pair of socks...the socks are the "ice cream" part!

The last part (and this will be the fun part for me)...I made a disc of ice cream truck music and I plan to take each girl home with the windows of my van rolled down..blaring these tunes. Okay, maybe not blaring...but we'll see if they get into it or not.

Hope to have some fun party pictures soon!

The countdown is on!

It's about this time of year when the kids start getting antsy. They are getting so excited for summer to be here and for school to be out. I, on the other hand, am trying to soak up the last bit of "free time" before school is out.

But this morning as I was packing Maggie's lunch, I realized that I too am little excited about school being out.

* I won't have to pack Maggie's lunch everyday. I don't about you guys, but I struggle every.single.day trying to come up with new stuff for her to take in her lunch sack. It's exhausting.

* There will be NO HOMEWORK! Maggie does a great job at doing her homework....once I get her to start. Earlier in the year, I tried giving her some free time after school to have a snack and get some energy out, but then I would have a hard time trying to get her to focus again. I just want her to get it done and over with, so that we can enjoy the rest of our evening. It's going to be a very nice break with no homework.

* I won't be watching the clock...all-day-long! With Max just going a half day....it just seems like I'm constantly watching the clock. Time to drop someone off, time to pick someone up, time to eat, time to....well you get the idea. I know we all do it, and next school year is going to be the same. The one good thing about next year is that at least both kids will be at the same school and get picked up at the same time. One less place for this taxi driver to go.

* I also am looking forward to the backpacks being put away for a while. Every single day a million papers come home. Then I get the wonderful job of trying to figure out which ones stay and which ones go. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing what my kids are working on, but seriously...there are a million of them. Mags is pretty good at saying..."aww, just pitch it mom!" (Gotta love that girl!) Max on the other hand wants to keep every single doodle for the rest of his life. I usually keep them for a few hours and then secretly pitch them under stuff so he can't find them. He has been known to go dumpster diving for a special picture in the past. (He totally doesn't get that trait from me!)

So my point is that I think I might just be a little more excited about school being out than the kids. The countdown is on...only 7 days and 1 hour to go! Woo-Hoo!

Seven & Sick = Sad

As you can tell...I've been bored.

The blog has had several new layout/headers over the past few days. At least I'm finding something productive to do with my time.

My girl, on the other hand, is struggling!

So far, age seven hasn't been too great. She got croup and strep just the day after her birthday. Needless to say...she's bored too. No school for two days and not being able to play with her friends...the poor girl...I'd be bored too.

We even had to postpone her little "friend" birthday party. It was supposed to be today, we are just going to have it after school one day next week. It will all work out just fine and she will be feeling better by then and hopefully able to enjoy her friends.

Better days are on there way...and I'm sure my sad seven year old will be back to normal in no time!

Maggie Ray

Seven years ago today at 8:38 pm, our sweet Miss Magpie came into the world. She has changed my life forever and I am so honored to be her mother.

She is so smart, so sweet, super silly,and we love you to pieces. Have a great day, Maggie! We love you!

For the Love of.....

LEGOS! (not Pete!)

I joined Max and his preschool class on a field trip yesterday. Currently there is a Lego display called The Art of the Brick at a local museum. It's just plain fabulous.

I was just amazed at all of his creations. Talk about a dream job!

Here are just a few of my photos!

We had a great time!