Weird Weather....

Yeah, welcome to Texas! Yesterday afternoon, it was 77 degrees outside and the kids were out riding their bikes. This morning? 31 degrees. DD sent the kids these hats for winter in a package yesterday. Parker just assumed that the blue one is for him...it has hearts and cute little ponies all over it....I guess he'll figure it out eventually! Susie wore her new hat to church last night, wanted to wear it to sleep (mommy said no!) and then put it on first thing this morning...She is such a funny little girl! Love her so much!!

The car is in the shop and we are hoping it will be done today or tomorrow. Strapping 3 carseats in Aaron's car is so hard! I didn't realize what space we had in the Tahoe until it was gone!! I am so thankful for my Tahoe and can't wait to have it back. Well...I'm off to get the little two ready for school. Today Santa and Mrs. Claus come to school and they are both so very excited!!

OH. MY. WORD.

Am I ever thankful today!! Last night the kids and I attended the Chili supper with the the "thankful" devo service up at church. It was a great fellowship and the kids had fun running around with their friends. I always love seeing everyone. I really do love our church family here. We all stood around and basically closed the building down and got in the car on the way home. Aaron was interviewing potential engineers for their company so he was out for the evening and it was just me and the sweet kids. The girls were really great at church so I told them that we would go to Sonic and get a milkshake. We were all excited and literally a stone's throw away from Sonic when we got hit. Yes. WE GOT HIT, IN OUR CAR. A little Saturn (we are a big Tahoe) pulls straight out across the road RIGHT in front of us...I swerved and hit the brakes as hard as I could. Thank you Lord that they just hit the front right fender!

Everyone is fine...this morning I'm a little sore, but I think that is just from tensing up to hit the brakes last night. I could see it happening...I even remember telling the kids to hold on because I could see the car pulling right out onto the street coming straight at us. CRAZY!
I'm so thankful that everyone was okay and that the people in the other car were fine. They can't drive, but they are fine as well. They thought that their little niece in the car was hurt (she was fine, just scared and screaming a little too loud) so they called the fire dept., twice. So, not only did we have a police car, but we had 2 fire trucks there on the site, with all their lights on. Parker thought it was all pretty cool. When you ask him what happened last night he says (in his little voice) "The BIG firetruck pulled right there beside me!!" What a blessing that is all he remembers!

I'm so thankful that we have such great friends. I knew that Aaron wasn't anywhere close, so I called the Frost family who had just been at church with us. They were there before the police arrived and took my kids into their car and helped keep them distracted from all the commotion. Then they called our friend, Jill, and she came to the rescue, too. Our friends here are such a blessing. I know I could have called any number of people and they would have been there in a second. We are so very blessed with wonderful and caring friends.

So today, I have many things to be thankful about this day before Thanksgiving:

1. 3, not a scratch on them, sweet kids!! Thank you, Lord!!

2. Wonderful friends that sat out in the cold with me last night when I was scared to death! They helped me feel better, gave me peace of mind, and I was so thankful to have another male there to help me remember what to do....my brain was not working. I just wanted to make sure that my babies were okay. Thanks SOO much, Ron Frost! It gave me such peace to know that you had my back with that kid who kept trying to give me his cash and didn't want me to report the accident to the insurance company.

3. A car that has GREAT brakes!

4. A car that drove home last night and didn't have to be towed to a shop!

5. A nice lady that stopped and waited to give her eye-witness account of the accident. She waited quite a long time and really didn't have to...nice lady. Another car stopped and helped us get out of the busy intersection. They were super nice and helped set a calm tone.

6. Did I say that we are okay? Yes, I'm still thankful for that!

7. An on the ball insurance company. I take the car in at 1:00 for an estimate, already. We love USAA.

8. Friends that call and check up on us....

9. A very concerned Daddy that got to come home today after being gone. He had to go back to the office, but we got to see him for a little while.

10. Sonic, which is where we are finally going to today for lunch....after all, we were on our way there yesterday before all this happened!

Go and count your blessings today and post them at X-Box wife's page. I'm so thankful for her!! She came home with me last night and helped me put my kids to bed!!

Sunday nights with Parker

On Sunday nights, Parker gets to stay up with us and watch "Sunday Night Football." I know, his sisters have to go to bed...yah, yah, yah....He's 2 and he loves football so for now, he gets to stay up. When he wants to start watching Barbie, he'll have to go to bed! Last night, Parker was so funny. After the Colts won, we were jumping up and down because we couldn't believe that they pulled off another squeaker...Parker kept running around the couch..."We win, we win!" It was so very cute!

During halftime he said, "I want my picture with you, Mama"....who can say no to that?

My sweet boys!

Baby it's cold...inside??

The kids are watching their morning cartoons...they wanted their own blankets this morning. Do you think it may be a little cold in the house? I guess it may be time to turn on the heat, eh? We are loving our "Do nothing Friday!" Well, it's not "Do Nothing" more as it is we aren't going anywhere and we have not a thing planned!!! Yippe! I love Fridays!!! I'm off to snuggle with my kids and put another load of clothes in the laundry. There is nothing like a warm load of clothes straight out of the dryer...wait, does that mean that I have to fold them, too? :)

Ten Things Tuesday!

It's Ten Things Tuesday...Here are mine! Go to X-Box Wife and post yours this week, too!

I'm thankful....

1. For daddy/ son relationships. Aaron and Parker have so much fun together. Last night after we put the kids to bed Aaron said, "Parker is just getting so big. He just isn't a baby anymore." Ya think?? It is true. He has been talking so big lately and of course, as the 3rd child, he thinks that he can do anything and well....he pretty much can. The other day, he opened the fridge and got out a cheese stick! Susie and Grace have always asked if they could have a snack and I would go and get it out of the fridge...Parker is just cutting out the middle man...ME!!


2. For Sisters!! They might not always get along, but they do love each other. After Susie's school program last week, when we got back in the car, Grace told Sus, "You did a great job up there singing, Susie." I was so proud.

3. Susie!! She had her school program last week and did a great job! This is her last year in Circle of Friends and she is thriving...next year she will be in Kindergarten...all day!


4. Great adult friends who love my kids!! We had a fun night Friday night with some great friends and then Saturday night we went out with all the kids, too.


5. My kids friends...These are the little boys in our small group on Sunday night. They are the cutest little things. Parker prays for his little buddies every night and I'm so thankful for their little friendships. They will all be in the same class at church and at school when they get a little older...sweet boys!

6. Grace! Grace made the "Battle of the Books" Team for the 2nd year in a row. She is so very excited and feels like an old pro because all the other kids on the team are new! She is doing so great in school and I'm so thankful!

7. Coffee. I know, but I do love it and it's warm on these chilly mornings!

8. Far away family. Aaron's parents sent a big care package for his birthday (it's next week) and it had new and oh so very cute P.J's in it for the kids. They were so excited.

9. The Internet. I've reconnected with some old friends on facebook and it has been so much fun! I love catching up with old and current friends!

10. Pre-School for the little ones. I've gotten most of my jobs done for today so I went and got a real hair cut!! Okay, not a big cut, just a trim...but for me, that is a big deal!! I'm thankful for the Tuesdays and Thursdays that they get to go and have fun with their friends and I can get a few things done...quickly!!

Okay, there is my list....go and do yours!!

Our Mondays....

Since school has started, the two little ones and myself, drive downtown to work at a daycare for inner city kids. It is called Fortress "Building Blocks" and we love it! It was established by the church that meets in the inner city area and is to help give the kids there a little head start before they go to pre-k or kindergarten. It's a Monday/Wednesday program right now and there are 13 little ones enrolled for our first year of operation. Completely free for these sweet kids! We only go on Mondays and then we have other friends that volunteer with the program on Wednesdays. Parker LOVES going to Fortress and being with his friends there. The program is staffed by mostly women from our church and a few gals that worship with the Fortress church there on Sundays. It is such a blessing to be with these cute little ones on Mondays and see how much that they are learning in such a short amount of time. I'm also so thankful that they let me bring Parker and Susie with me...I think they get as much or more out of it than I do, sometimes! We do love Fortress Mondays!

Every night Parker prays, "Dear God, Thank you for my family, Thank you for my Jesus, Thank you for my friend Jo Jo, my friend Ty Ty, my friend Owen and my friend Kendall. Help me to have sweet dreams. In Jesus name, AAAAMMMEN!" Well, the picture above is with Parker and his buddy JoJo that he loves so dearly. They are little stinkers at Building Blocks and you would never guess that they are a year apart because they are the same size!

Vote True 2008

This is so cute!!

10 Things Tuesday!

I'm trying to come back to the blogging world....I'll start with my 10 things Tuesday!

1. I'm thankful that it is Tuesday!!

2. I'm thankful that Grace is feeling better. She woke up at 2:30 this morning, had some tummy issues, but hasn't had any action in the restroom since about 6:30. That means that she can go on her field trip tomorrow, if she is up to going!

3. I'm thankful for friends that can keep my little ones so that I can go on a Wednesday morning field trip.

4. I'm thankful that the school carnival is over and was a fun day for everyone. I really think that our PTA is clicking along and we have a great mix of officers and volunteers. We had a good time on Saturday, but I'm glad that today is Tuesday! Did I say that already?

5. I'm so very thankful that the "Fall for Fortress" 1st Annual Charity Event went so well. There were so many generous donors and bidders. The last I heard, the total was over $15, 000 raised for Fortress Youth Development Center! It was a wonderful and fun night. We got to sit at a table with the host for the evening, Doug Dunbar, a local celebrity news anchor. He did an absolutely wonderful job as the Master of Ceremonies for the night and he and his wife were fun to sit with at the table. Thanks to everyone who put the evening together. It was a smashing success in my eyes!

6. I'm thankful for fun trips to see loved ones from far away! This weekend we are going to Searcy for Reagan and Nate's wedding!! I love Reagan so much and we are so excited for the two of them as they build their new life together. We also get to go trick-or-treating at Nana and Papa's house so that is a great bonus to the weekend. The kids can't wait to see everyone, but they especially want to see Aunt Jess and Uncle Cliff...of course!

7. I'm thankful for fun trips that we are planning! At the Fortress Auction, we had some friends that bid and won a trip to somewhere tropical and we are going, too! We all ordered our plane tickets last night while we were talking on the phone and I can't wait for our fun times in February!

8. I'm thankful for friends from Graham that keep coming back to see us. The Bozemans came in Friday night and we took the kids to Fright Night at Six Flags. Aaron had a softball game so he and Parker had a boys night in town and I took the girls to Arlington to meet the crew from Graham. Susie loved being with her best little buddy McKynna and Grace had a great time with Bryce and Gage. We saw several families from church there and there wasn't one thing "frightful" about the whole night.

The kids were pretending to be scared in the pictures....these blow up things were as about as scary as the place got. Of course, we left BEFORE the parade of the zombies at 11:00, too. Don't want to see TOO much in one night!

9. I'm thankful for a hubby that sees when I'm pushed to the limit and steps in and helps me out. This weekend was busy and there were so many things going on...Sunday night he started cleaning the office and living room. Love him...so much!

10. I'm thankful for a church family that loves us. We had truck or treat Sunday night and it was a blast. Aaron was the man in the yellow hat and Parker was Curious George. Of course, you can't tell very good in the pictures because the wind was so crazy...it kept blowing his hat in all directions. Grace was Wonder Woman and Susie was Little Bo Peep. We all stayed warm, for the most part and had a great time with the kids and our friends. It was a fun night for all.

Now, go over to X-Box wife and share YOUR Ten Things Tuesday!

I'm back, just for a minute!

I started this post 3 weeks ago...yes, 3 weeks. Things have been crazy around here and I can't believe that of all days, today, I'm sitting down here at the computer....I need a good distraction for a few minutes. Our carnival is at Grace's school tomorrow= busy times for this mama in the PTA, but I am having a great time and meeting new people every day.

Here are a few pictures for the family so that they won't feel like I have completely forgotten to take pictures of my sweet kids!

The fundraiser for Fortress and their Building Blocks program is tomorrow night and I'm so excited about going. The kids in the Building Blocks program are doing so great. They are learning more every day and I love being there on Mondays. Parker prayed for his friend, Jo Jo, last night when he said his night time prayers. It made my heart so happy. There are some great auction items that we are ready to bid on for Christmas presents for the family and to make some money for a program that we strongly believe in here in Ft. Worth. If you live in the area and would like to come to our Fundraiser tomorrow night, give me a call or leave me a message. I'll be glad to help you get a ticket! There is everything from a Tony Romo signed football to a 7 day trip to stay in Belize. It should be so great. Uncle Julio's is catering on site...ymmm....something that you don't want to miss!

I took Sus and Parker to a birthday party at the pumpkin patch last Saturday. I'll post about it next week...The cute on in the middle is Susie's buddy, Mason. Love him and mine!

What else....Hmmm...Oh, I almost forgot that tonight I'm taking the girls to Six Flags "Fright Fest" with our friends the Bozemans from Graham. Aaron has a softball game so he and Parker are going to have a guys night. I'm hoping that Fright Night won't be too scary or I may have to leave early! And then to cap off the busy weekend, we have a great worship time planned for Sunday morning with Trunk or treat on Sunday night. Wheew....I think that my bed is going to look pretty great on Sunday night!

Okay, you can read what I wrote 3 weeks ago, if you have enough time. There is a little thing snuck in there that you can do if you follow the directions, too! I'll be back better after the weekend. I just wanted to write and get all of my loved ones off my back about not blogging for so long!




Here is the ever so late post:

My friend, Chandra, nominated me for a blog award. I can't believe it! he he he. You know sometimes when you read a blog and you just feel like that person is living your life, but in a different place? That is Chandra to me. When we lived in Alaska, we took advantage of every opportunity that we could for the 2 short years that we lived there. I think we visited every museum, park and most certainly the zoo all the time. Isn't that what season passes are for? Well, Chandra, her hubby B and their cute little boy, H, so remind me of us at that time in our lives. They live up north and are embracing life even though they are true southerners. I love it. Also, she is a lover of coffee just like me. I cannot make it though my morning without my cup of java.

I just realized that I started writing this post like 2 weeks ago....Chandra sent me a great pay it forward gift....a jar of pumpkin butter from the pumpkin patch that they like to visit in New Jersey! I was like a little kid at Christmas opening up a gift, I was sooo excited! So, if you agree to do this too, I will send a gift to the first 3 people that comment on my blog, too! Let's all pay it forward! So you just post on your blog that you are going to send out a pay it forward gift to the first three people that comment and then I will pay it forward to you! If you are here in town, I make a mean Sour Cream cake! :) Be sure to let me know in my comments that you are going to pay it forward, too!

Okay, back to Chandra...She gave me a "I love your blog" award.So sweet. Love her and her blog. Now it's my turn to pick out four people and their blogs. HMMMM.... so many blogs, so little time before a child melts down and I have to tend to a ouchie that may or may not be there.

So, when you're nominated you get to pass on four awards to someone else. My nominees are:

1. This Pilgrims Progress. Yes, this is my cousin, Kathryn's blog. She is a great writer and has some super recipes that she posts as well. She has a grown son so she has time to do cool things like...READING! I love to read her book reviews. One day I'll get to read again, too. She and her hubby John got back from a fun trip to Italy and I loved looking at all of her pictures.

2. The Salza Family. This is my great friend from college, Shellie. She is a mom blogger like me, but she went all political on me this week and I LOVED it! Her little boy is a cutie, too!

3. X-Box Wife. I am so blessed to personally know Mrs. Brownstone, aka X-box wife, and I love her dearly. She has created a place in the blogsphere where you can go every week and post your, "10 Things Tuesday" and tell about 10 things (any day of the week) that you are Thankful for that week! What a blessing and I'm thankful for her!

4. The Parks Family. We go to church with the Parks family and what a talented and creative family that they are, indeed! She designs blogs, makes bows and is super wife and mom all at the same time!

Ten Things Wednesday!!

It seems like things have been going non-stop since we got back from our trip a few weeks ago. All of the sudden I looked at the calendar and noticed that today is Oct. 1st! It just seems so crazy to me that this year is running by so very quickly. Aaron is at the dentist this morning and when he comes home we are going to spend the morning with Susie and Parker before he's out the door for something else. I've been neglecting my 10 Things Tuesday Lists, so I'm back today. It's Wednesday, but I'm sure that is no big deal...I'm still thankful, no matter the day of the week! Go over to my friend Jill at X-Box Wife and post a link to your list today!!

This week I'm thankful :

1. Susannah turned 5 this week! Just crazy! That means that we were about to move across the country to Alaska this time 5 years ago. I know my parents thought that we were half crazy moving to Alaska with a 2 year old and a 7 DAY old that year. I'm thankful for all of my babies, but today Susannah gets top bill because of her special day!!


2. I'm thankful that God provided us with great friends up in Alaska and everywhere else that we have lived in this journey that we call life! Friends are so very important to our family.

3. I have a great Family. Many family and friends called SusieQ for her big day and she loved every phone call. One call was from one of our friends at church at 7:15 in the morning (she was up, it was just the first call of the day) and she giggled the whole time that Mr. Steve sang to her. She also really loved the call from her sweet Uncle Cliff. She LOVES her Uncle Cliff so much....it's pretty cute!

4. I'm thankful that I figured out what Parker loves to do outside....He LOVES to turn on the outside faucet and play in the water to make mud! Is that a little boy or what? I was moving clothes from the washer to the dryer and I could hear a noise. It was the water on...who taught him how to turn on the water???? Oh well, now we just have to go out and make sure that he doesn't turn on the water and leave it on!! Two days in a row we have changed his clothes...head to toe....what fun and he is having a blast!

5. I'm thankful that Parker is having a blast at his little school. His teacher stopped me yesterday at said that she loves having him in class. His note that went home last week said, "I was a little mischievous, but I'm just so cute." He also used the potty at school and impressed his teachers, so that was cool!

6. I'm thankful that Grace's teeth are all coming in straight now that we had all of her dental work done in August. The dentist said that her mouth would start to change pretty quick after she pulled that tooth and she was right! They are all starting to fall into place...next step, the Orthodontist on Monday to see what he wants us to do. Grace is now smiling big again in her pictures and I know it's because she is excited that her teeth are getting better!! :)

7. I'm thankful that I have parents that are night owls that I can call really late...My mom and dad are so busy, but I know I can call them at 11 and we can have a good chat! They are the best...I just wish they could visit more often!

8. I'm thankful for all the ladies that have been working day after day up at our church for Give Away Day that is in about 10 days. They have been sorting and hanging up clothes non-stop! I went and worked in the toy room while the kids were in school yesterday and had to leave after lunch because the dust was too much for my contacts. Those women up there are tireless and twice my age! I am just in awe of their hours spent working.

9. I'm thankful for our nice (cooler) weather that we have been having here the past few days! We turned off the air and opened up the windows!! I was even a little chilly this morning and Grace wore her jacket to Wellness Wednesday early this morning. I know Mrs. Brownstone is loving it too...she just loves fall!!


10. I'm thankful for my sweet hubby who takes care of all of us. He never stops giving and I love him so much!