A new smile...

Today was the day that Maddy had been waiting for...the day she got her braces. She has a beautiful smile, but just like her MawMaw, she has a huge overbite. She also has a really small mouth and all those teeth are getting a little crowded in there. We went for our consultation in March, shopped around orthodontists, and then waited. As you can imagine, the waiting was the hardest part for her--patience is not her virtue. It seemed like every other day she was asking, "When can I get my braces?" So today was the day....

Here she is, before....

and after. Still a beautiful smile.
So that's how I spent my morning...waiting in the orthodontist's waiting room. This afternoon, I got the craving for squash. Nanny style. Now, I never really learned to cook. Not from lack of trying on my mother's part, but I just was never interested. When I got married the first time, I mainly cooked for the kids, which consisted of Ramen noodles and macaroni and cheese. I dabbled in cooking some things out of a cookbook, but the kids never liked anything besides their macaroni and cheese, so I gave up. When I met Daryl, I found he would eat just about anything, and I figured that he could get his southern home cooking fix when we went to Nanny's after church. Daryl's mom cooks these amazing meals, HUGE meals. Lately I have noticed that when my sister in law is there, and they start talking recipes and cooking, I am hopelessly left out. What am I going to say? "Oh, I used the generic brand of taco seasoning on our weekly taco night!" And what is going to happen when I start to be the one who has the kids and grandkids over for Sunday dinner?

So I tried to make the squash today. Nanny said she simply cut up the squash and some onion, and then sauteed them with some olive oil. Maybe add a little salt. Obviously, as shown in the picture below, I am unclear on how to sautee.

First of all, that was three whole squash, and that tiny little bit in the bottom of one of Charlotte's baby bowls is all I got. Second of all, it is a bit brown. A little charred even. Nanny's is always a nice golden color, and not dried out in the bottom of her skillet. It was good though, even though it looks terrible! I'll try it again until I get it right, and I've a roast in the freezer to try as well. Poor Daryl scraped the bottom of the domestic barrel when he married me. I am hoping to change that and perhaps, just perhaps, I will not be the "go to" family/church member for paper products and soft drinks!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Eight years ago today, I married my best friend. The kids like to say that "we" got married, and really, truth be told, we were a package deal. When Daryl and I got married, it completed us as a family. I got a husband and they got a dad.

Eight years ago, I thought I knew what marriage was. I had been married. I knew what it was like to share a home with another person, to share my heart. I knew what it was to be a parent. I knew what it was to create a child with another person and to care for it and love it. Eight years ago, I thought I knew. Eight years ago, I was wrong.

Now, eight years later, I realize all I had been missing. And eight years later, I am even more in love with the man who introduced me to true love. To unselfish, unconditional love.

In some ways it seems so long ago since that afternoon when Josh walked me down the aisle and gave me away. In other ways, it seems like only yesterday. In some ways, I miss those days, the days with more time and energy for each other. In other ways, I so love the big, busy, boisterous family we have become. In all ways, on all days, I am so thankful for the blessings that God has given us in the last eight years.

Today, Daryl and I celebrate eight years of marriage and nine years (minus one day) of being together. He surprised me with tickets to Phantom of the Opera at the Fox. We went to see this same show early in our relationship, and we had a pretty serious disagreement before we went. I admit that I have no recollection of the show, but vivid recollection of how my heart felt like it was turned inside out. I can't wait to go and see it with new, older, wiser, and I admit, more rational eyes.

I was waiting for my tutoring check to come in from the school, just as I was for Father's Day and his birthday, so I could get him a super cool gift that I had been planning for months. Well, it still isn't here, so instead, Daryl got this beautiful bouquet of candy from me. Each kind of candy had significance--sweet tarts for my sweet heart, and others equally corny...

The kids--ok, really the girls, but Josh agreed to it--made us each a coupon book. So sweet those three!

Then, when we both got home from working/tutoring, we went out to Red Lobster for dinner, where I completely disregarded my diet. The grilled shrimp and scallops weren't too bad. Nor was the steamed broccoli. I think it was the two cheese/garlic biscuits that did me in!
Anyways...one day at a time, no guilt, and move on. Tomorrow is another day.
The only picture I have of us on our anniversary date is really not even of us, but of Hannah, clinging to Daryl, sobbing and begging to go with us.


Happy Anniversary, Daryl! It's been a great eight years. I love you!

More Summer Fun

I love summer. As much as I love my job, I love my family even more. And even though I've been working way more than I usually do during the summer, I've been blessed to watch my babies (even those who aren't babies anymore) play. This week...

Maddy and Hannah got married...

Hannah looks like she doesn't quite know what to make of the bridal kiss!

Also this week, Hannah played hard. So hard that she just couldn't keep her eyes open anymore! (How tired she must have been to have fallen asleep under Daryl's sweaty arm!)

The heat got the best of us this weekend, and the girls got out the hose and the pool for some "swimming."

Charlotte was not so excited about the mist of the hose, but LOVES the baby pool!

Hannah has lived in her swimsuit since we got out the hose. She loves her Ariel "babing soup!"

And finally....finally it happened! Charlotte grew enough hair to hold a bow!!! Saturday night, I lay in bed before I went to sleep making plans to bust out the bow maker and make a trip to Hancock's for ribbon so I could start on her collection of bows.

Needless to say...I think we have a way to go. Doesn't she look thrilled?

She looks just like her pawpaw with a bow stuck on her head!

I've also, this summer, had a chance to exercise. Today marks 30 consecutive days that I have exercised for 40 minutes or more. So proud of myself for keeping it up, and surprisingly, look forward to it. It's been soooooo soooooo sooooooo hot, but I've gotten out there every night after dinner and walked for 40 minutes to an hour. Not sure what is happening on the scale, but I know that I almost lost my shorts last time I walked, and my waking blood pressure this morning was 106/69. I'm sleeping better, I have more energy, and I've broken my sugar addiction. My clothes are fitting better and I'm sleeping better. Most importantly, my girls are eating healthier and exercising and making more conscious decisions about what they put in their bodies.

This weekend, we head to the lake and the week after that, I'm not tutoring at all.

I love summer!

When the going gets tough...

The tough go to Goodwill?

It had been that kind of day. I'd gotten up early to take Maddy to the orthodontist to begin the braces process. Charlotte hadn't been up when I left, and by the time I got home for my brief, all too brief, stay at home, it was time for her to go back down for her nap. As I drove to the school for my first tutoring session, I was missing my babies, missing being at home, missing out on summer. I was discouraged at my lack of ability to get it together this summer--the house was still as messy as it was during the school year and I seem to be home only slightly more. There was just a general feeling of discontent.

I got to school, hoping to lose myself in teaching, in my summer kids. My first student was one that I had a few years ago. He was challenging at best then, but we forged a special bond anyways. So far this summer, he had been cooperative and somewhat pleasant. Until today. All the old frustrations came rushing back and for the first time this summer, I felt defeated at the end of a session. To be honest, I just wanted to go home. But I couldn't. I had three more students to work with and didn't have the time or gas to go home for an hour. So instead...I went shopping. At Goodwill.

Now you are probably thinking to yourself, "What kind of weirdo spends an hour looking through other people's stuff to relax and unwind?" That would be this one. And that little bit of incredibly cheap retail therapy worked its magic. I spent $35.00 and ended up with 2 cute dresses for Charlotte, 5 books for Sarah, 3 for Hannah, and these for me The selection was bleak. Too many books with a shirtless Fabian-type on the cover. Too many period novels. But I did manage to get enough to get me through the next couple of weeks. Many of them are trash...there is nothing of substance in the lot. OK, most of them are trash. Ok, OK, OK...all of them are trash, but they'll keep me entertained and read me to sleep for the rest of the summer.

I could have come out with about $100 in children's books too. In fact, I had them in the cart. But then I came to my senses, chose three for Hannah, and put the rest back. There were some great picture books, great chapter books, and someone had gotten rid of an entire reading program. It was HARD to resist. But seeing as I already have a classroom library of close to 1000 books--more than fit on the three bookshelves I have--it probably was a wise decision to put them back.

Tomorrow is my busiest day, and then one on Friday morning, and then THE WEEKEND!!! Isn't every day supposed to be the weekend during summer??? Hmmm...food for thought!

Daddy-Daughter Date Night

Daryl is getting big big brownie points as a daddy these days. For Father's Day, he wrote each of the big kids a letter telling them how proud he was to be their dad (and a bunch of other mushy stuff that made me (and Sarah) cry). Then tonight was Daddy-Daughter Date Night at Truett's Grill. You had to make reservations, get dressed up, and everything. Here's my man and my girls all ready to go (and all in blue too!)

I stayed home and took a walk and lounged on the couch in complete silence, but I sent the camera with them. Here is a first. For as long as she has been alive, Hannah has been terrified of the Chick Fil A cow. She has spent many a dinner with her head buried in Daryl's neck. So convinced that her brother was inside the cow costume that she even went over and got her picture taken with him!

Their directions were to 'discreetly' get a picture of Josh working. Not sure how discreet they were, but here he is in action!

After dinner, there were crafts outside.

I think they all had fun, and Daryl is back to work in the "room" while the rest of us women sit and watch TV. I'm hoping Daddy-Daughter date night becomes a regular occurence in our house. There's nothing quite like a daddy and his girls!

Celebration

This weekend was a weekend of celebration.

A celebration of new learning...

"But Mom, I did it all myself!"

And Hannah found all the right letters and spelled her name all by herself!
A celebration of Maddy coming home from church camp in Daytona, Florida. She memorized the most Bible verses of anyone there (out of 275 campers!) and brought home this trophy. She also came home on fire for the Lord.

We celebrated Daryl on Father's Day. For our gift to him this year, each of the children and I wrote out 60 or so reasons why we love him (I actually wrote the little girls') and then put all 365 reasons and 365 smarties(his favorite) in a big jar. One reminder of how much we love him for every day in the coming year. Some were sweet, some were funny, all were true.

Josh also spent his own money and got Daryl a new GPS. So proud of that boy.

My loves.

After we opened presents and took pictures, Hannah insisted that her Daddy dance with her. So the girls played their ringtones and they danced!

We also celebrated my birthday this weekend. Daryl let me sleep in (til 8:00!) and everyone stayed home. We went out to eat with my parents at Golden Corral. And I got this:

Josh and Daryl pooled their money to get me a new laptop. I can't tell you how incredibly surprised I was. I figured I'd be laptop-less until the last one graduated college! I was also touched by how Josh chipped in to buy this for me, when he needs one of his own.

So with new lap top in hand...surely I'll be able to blog more, right????

Happy Birthday Daryl!

(or why I just may be the worst wife ever)

Growing up, my mom always made sure our birthday was special. We always had candles in our breakfast (donuts usually), candles in our lunch, candles in our cake, gifts picked with loving care. As a mother, I have tried to do this with my kids too. And with Daryl. And today, the day celebrating the 45th anniversary of his birth? Epic Fail.

No candles in his breakfast--we both rushed out the door this morning. I'm not even sure if I kissed him good bye. I did tell him Happy Birthday this morning as soon as he woke up, though, in my defense. After a long day of working (electrical for him, tutoring for me) we met at Chili's for a family celebratory dinner. Where he and Josh very proudly told me that they had flea bombed the house. Now, I should have been grateful for the initiative to get the dogs flea free. I should have. In hindsight. But instead, I spent the whole dinner worried and fussing because they had failed to cover/remove any of Charlotte's things. I turned what should have been a nice family dinner (despite the very loud Charlotte and the flinging of mashed potatoes) into a not very pleasant experience. I"m afraid that when we got home, the birthday fail continued with me going out for a walk while all of Char's things went through the laundry and he was stuck giving the dogs a flea bath.

We did finally get around to having cake and presents.

Here's Daryl and Hannah patiently waiting for Josh to light his candle.

Blowing out his candle. (Yes. that is a decorative candle, as I was woefully unprepared and no regular candles left)
Reading his card from my mom and dad.

And finally cake! He requested vanilla with buttercream icing.

Hannah loved it!

Really really loved it.

Charlotte was asleep, Sarah at a mandatory cheer meeting, and Madeline at the beach at camp, so it was just the little girls, Josh, and us.

So a picture of Josh--with our defective knife.

All this to say happy birthday to my sweet, patient, understanding husband whom I do not even come close to deserving. I thank God every day for sending him to us!

I love you, Daryl!

You know you are learning to walk when....

Sunday Style

Last Saturday, we met Grandma in Conyers for a little shopping. She had some Kohl's cash she needed to spend, and as usual, didn't want to spend it on herself. The girls were happy to oblige! Thank you, Grandma, for a fun few hours and our pretty pretty clothes!

Sarah in an outfit that I would actually wear! OK, that's not really how I meant it. What I meant was that our tastes usually are way different, but as I was browsing, I saw this skirt and thought to myself, "If I was small enough, I would totally get that skirt!" Of course, I wouldn't look nearly as cute as she does!

And here is my sweet Sarah singing a special for the very first time. She sang "Temporary Home" by Carrie Underwood, and it was beautiful. She was so nervous, but she did a great job!
Maddy in her new skirt and her favorite purchase of the day, her shoes! (Now that's my girl!)

Char Char looking cute in cherries.

And here's Hannah. Mad because she had told me that she wanted to go next and I took Maddy's picture instead. Can you say drama queen?

She finally did stop crying and telling me that I "broke her heart" and I was able to snap this cute picture. Not a new dress, but a cute girl!

Char and Daddy, ready for church.

Josh refused to get his picture taken, but you can see his head there in the background, perusing Facebook. Believe me, he looked handsome (as always). He opted out of shopping with Grandma to go swimming with Maranda. Hmmm...the girl wins again!

Summertime, and the livin is easy...

or so the song, made famous by my dad (in my world at least), says. So far, though, the summer has been anything but easy living. It's been busy busy busy! I don't remember what made me think tutoring all these children all summer would be relaxing (oh wait,...that college thing). So far, it's really a whole lot like work, with no air conditioning.

The rest of us, though, have been enjoying the summer...

standing

(sorry for the blurry picture. the autofocus doesn't work anymore and I seem to often forget to focus it myself. Reason number 2, number one being my proclivity to include my finger in the corner of many pictures, I am not a photographer)

waving bye bye any time anyone picks her up, usually with both hands
and transitioning to table food. Even with only three teeth, she can eat just about anything.

Josh and Daryl have been up with the sun every morning to go do electrical work, and then home before it gets too hot so they can....

work at Chick Fil A

or work in "Joshie's room"

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, that. is a wall. And behind that a tub and plumbing. It appears that we are finally making some progress!

Probably the most significant change we have made this summer was putting away the scale.

Yep, put it away. Up on a shelf, under my sweaters.

The girls and I have decided that this will be our summer of getting healthy. Sarah wants to get in shape for cheer season, Maddy wants to get in shape for the beach, and I need to get in shape to lower my blood pressure (and really, the baby weight? Not too attractive) So we started eating better and walking every day, but still the numbers on the scale continued to dictate how we felt, our motivation, our mood. And that is NOT something I wanted to pass on to my daughters. When I am in diet mode, I get on the scale every single morning and night. If it was down, I was happy and motivated. If it was up, I was depressed and ate everything in sight. It's no secret I've had issues with my weight and with my relationship with food. I've been overweight, obese, normal, underweight. I've been a compulsive eater and bulimic. I've never been comfortable in my own body, always wished it were thinner, leaner, more toned. When I had Hannah, my attitude changed from one of loathing to one of gratitude for all my body has done. It's carried, nourished, and fed five children. That is amazing when you think of it. But still, body image and food issues creep back in when I least expect it. It's been the one constant in my life, and an unpleasant one at that. And I want more for my daughters. I want them to find their worth in their hearts, their abilities, their talents, their Lord. I want them to be proud and confident, no matter what they look like, no matter what the scale says. I want them to have a healthy relationship with their body and with food.

So we put away the scale. For now, we are concentrating on eating foods that are good for our bodies. Lots of fruits, veggies, grilled chicken and lean protein, and whole wheats. Lots of water and no soda. We are exercising every day. Right now it is just walking together for 30 minutes a day. It's hot, oh so hot, and sweaty, and there are mosquitoes. But it's also good bonding and talking time when we go together, and good prayer time for me when I'm alone.

For right now, it's just for the summer. Depending on how it goes, it may be permanently. But I am hoping that these habits that we are developing now, during this summer of "easy livin" will last a lifetime!

Monday

There are so many songs with the word Monday in the title or the lyrics--

Monday, Monday....so good to me by the Mamas and the Papas
Just Another Manic Monday... by the Bangles
Come Monday, It'll be alright... by Jimmy Buffett
Tell me why I don't like Mondays by Tori Amos/Boomtown Rats

And I can just vouch that today, everyone of those fit. Whew. What...a...day. I got to do things I love to do, things I don't like to do, things I loathe doing. I laughed, cried, and paced. There was the good, the bad, and the ugly. And at the end of this first official Monday of my summer vacation, I find myself looking back on my Monday and being thankful for the blessings and the struggles of the day.

The Good
So much good. So much good.

I got to have lunch with two of my favorite people ever, Sarah and Madeline. I just love the way that our relationship is changing as they grow older. And we so enjoyed our lunch at Chili's. It could have been better if I would have indulged myself in a bacon cheeseburger, french fries, and a big ol' diet coke (as every fiber of my being was screaming for), but I will be proud in the fact that instead I got a "guilt-free" grilled chicken sandwich with a side of steamed broccoli. And proud of my girls for making healthy choices as well. This is something we are working on together, the three of us, this summer.

I got some great reading time in with Hannah and some good snuggle time with Charlotte. I just love to see how Hannah rejoices in finding a book that she can't wait to dive into. Makes a book lover/momma/first grade teachers heart proud. Charlotte wasn't feeling her best today, which is really part of the UGLY, but I did get a cuddle or two, so rare lately, as she is usually eager to get down and explore.

I started tutoring today, and was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed it. I think I must retract my earlier statement (in which I said I loathe tutoring) and change it to say I do like it when I'm not doing it after I have taught all day and am ready to go get my babies!

And I got to go to the funeral of an amazing man. Now don't get me wrong. I'm sorry he is no longer with us. I am sorry for his family who will miss him dearly. I will miss seeing him around church. But I know without a doubt that he is healthy and living in presence of our Savior, and for that I am glad. It also warmed my heart to see the family, how they came together; the church, how they ministered to the family; and the faith of everyone there. Inspiring. Sweet. Thought-provoking.

The Bad
For the first time ever, Hannah looked up at me with big "don't leave me" eyes when I dropped her off at Kay's this morning. Broke. my. heart. I wanted to scoop her up in my arms and take her with me to the funeral, but I knew she would be fine. But still. Mommy guilt galore!

The Ugly
After a great morning, followed by a good lunch, we went to pick up the little girls from Kay's, only to find Charlotte screaming and pulling on her ear. For those of you who know Charlotte, you know she just doesn't do this. Hannah? Yeah--did it for most of her first year of life, and still on occasion will. But not sweet Charlotte. After a quick call to her pediatrician (who, surprise!, had no appointments available), we ended up at Children's Healthcare Urgent Care ...for three and a half hours. And yes, it was as bad as you are imagining. But, after three and a half hours of singing and walking, we did get to see the doctor for all of 37 seconds and got an antibiotic. Hopefully this will do the trick!

So another Monday is in the books. Over. Done. Kaput.

And as the highly underrated Cowboy Junkies put it,
"Sun comes up, It's Tuesday Morning..." And Tuesday, just has to be a little bit better.

Have you figured it out yet?

Because, really, by now you should have. The best way for me to fail miserably at something is to announce it on the blog. Remember these?

*I'm going to get organized! Look at this great book! And...well...I lasted all of 5 weeks.

*I'm going to get healthy, lose weight, lower my blood pressure! And...well...that lasted until I lost weight, ate healthy for about three months and it didn't make one bit of difference!

*This summer, I'm going to tackle the laundry...and win! And aha! I've been doing laundry all day and I'm thisclose to catching up! And well...that was the last day I did laundry my friends. There goes the "I'm working all day and can't muster the time nor energy to get it done" excuse. And darn it, it was a good one!

So I should have known...you should have known...when these words came out of my mouth (fingers) "I will blog every day this summer" that I was setting myself up for a fall. Sorry about that. Nature of this beast, I'm afraid. Starting with great enthusiasm? My forte. Finishing? Eh, not my thing. I think the only thing that I truly started and finished with enthusiasm(or actually, finished at all) was Couch to 5K. Yep, I ran. For like 30 minutes straight. For a whole 5K. That coveted Peachtree Roadrace T-shirt was in reach--one of those items on my bucket list. Until I realized that the Peachtree was a 10K and there was NO way that was happening. Sigh. It's still on my bucket list. Maybe I'll have to volunteer or something to get the t-shirt.

(So I won't even tell you that I have exercised 5 days in a row. Or that I've eaten NO junk food or had even one sip of diet coke pass my lips in a week. Because that would mean that I would log off and immediately eat myself into a twinkie and diet coke induced coma while planting my ample behind on the couch.)

One thing I am committed to, and I KNOW without a doubt I will continue, though, is reading to my kids. I read to the big kids every day--Josh, even, every day in the womb. When they got too old to read to, I started the 30 minute, Drop Everything And Read, rule in our house where the kids and I would all read for thirty minutes a day. And now, I don't have to make them read...they do it on their own. And I intend to continue this with Hannah and Charlotte.
There is no better way to foster a good student, a good reader, a good writer, a good vocabulary than to read.

And to show you just how committed I am to this, I will allow this blurry picture of a tired, sweaty me with my sweet girls during our "reading" time to be posted. My vanity loses to my love of literature!

And now if you will excuse me, Hannah's standing next to me with a pile of books to read. Gotta love it!

PS--thank you Melinda for putting me over the top! (or at least into double digits!)

Pure Randomness...

This first week of summer has been a good one...except for the whole blood pressure, but more on that later. It's been relaxing...almost too much. I think the kids have watched more TV than in the last two weeks combined in these three days, and I find them more often than not sprawled on the couch. They have been a great help to me when I have had to go in to work, but they are being compensated for that (Maddy with a camp trip to Daytona and Sarah with one pair of shoes a week).

We've also taken up walking after lunch. A terribly hot time to walk, for sure, but I am here and they are willing, and I need that one time filling/fuss ending activity to get Charlotte to her 2:00 nap. Plus it's good exercise, and I swear I must sweat out at least a pound a day!

We also got this in the mail yesterday--Hannah's K4 supply list. Can I tell you that this just makes me giddy and sad all at the same time?!?!
Charlotte and I have had to get used to being around each other all day...and for me that means finding something to occupy her for the entire day, because the child all of the sudden has decided not to nap longer than 45 minutes at a time. Now that she is crawling, she is a bit happier on the floor, but a lot harder to watch after!

The high chair has been a life saver. I sit her in there and let her eat Cheerios while I work in the kitchen. Sometimes, she just likes to eat her fingers, but she seems to enjoy being up and able to see what I"m doing.

Cookie cutters also seem to keep her busy for at least five minutes, when she decides that it is fun to throw them!

Josh did get up off the couch long enough to go out with Maranda a handful of times and...get ready....gasp...CLEAN HIS ROOM. Now mind you, I haven't made him clean his room in about a year. I figure he's 18, and if he wants to live in filfth, so be it. He is the only one who totally takes care of his own laundry, so I try to cut him some slack, knowing that sooner or later he would get tired of the mess. He did. It took him 6 1/2 hours to clean it and he found some really old stuff...like this picture...his acting debut in fifth grade!

I have spent lots of time cleaning and doing laundry. Oh how I love being home with them, and having them all home. But it seems to bring with it an endless supply of dishes, laundry, and messes!

I also have been trying to keep busy because the doctor has instructed me NOT to take my blood pressure until I go back on Tuesday. My bp was down when I went to the doctor on Tuesday...still high, but not so alarmingly so. So I have instructions to lay off the salt, the caffeine, and most of all the stress of worrying about it and we'll take it from there. Me? Not worry? Um,....yeah....OK. I've been trying not to, and drinking tons of water (and not one drop of diet coke), laying off anything remotely salty, walking every day. We will see. Thank you for praying. Please continue to keep me in your prayers. I really don't want to be on a higher dose of medication or any other medications.

Tomorrow is Daryl's surgery. We have to be at the hospital at 6:30 am, surgery at 8:30 am and then they said recovery could be as long as 23 hours. Ugh. Pray that all goes well, that it is a success, that he has a good recovery, and that they let him come home!

Happy Hump Day!