It's been a long while since I've posted on this blog, just a few weeks shy of 2 years.  A lot has happened over the past few years.  I started the other website in hopes to be more of a ministry to women with devotions and encouragement.  I've missed this freestyle of blogging so much, that I decided to come back to it!!  I may grab a few things off the other from time to time to share over here.  
It's amazing to look at where we left off two years ago and see where we are now.  My kids have grown up so much!!  I have two teenagers, one just finished drivers ed and is starting a job this week.  I am definitely at a different stage in life as a mom.  It's a good stage, and I'm happy here, miss my babies, but I am happy where we are!  God is Good all the time and All the time, God is Good!  :)

Sometimes you just have to take a moment to laugh, be silly and enjoy the little things.  I love opening up the Photo Booth program on my computer and calling the girls to join me.  If you have kids, and you have photo booth, and you have never been silly  with your kids with photo booth, WAIT NO LONGER!!!  Your kids will love it and you will get some good laughs too!  We laugh so much and so hard at all the silliness that comes along with this program! 
Life has been busy and even hard around here.  I'm here to explain where I have been the past few weeks. 
The week of Thanksgiving we headed out to the Wichita Mountains and camped out all week.  Yep, we are no sissies, we camped in a tent at the end of November!  I'm pretty proud of us.  ha     
Anyhow, I took lots and lots of photos.  When we got home and got settled back into everyday life I eventually uploaded the photos from our trip and made a really fun video. Just as I was finished with it, the hard drive on the computer went out and we lost pretty much the last 10 or so years of our recorded life.  Photos, files, well, you know, a whole lot of stuff.  I had not deleted the photos of our trip off of the camera chip, so I get to re-edit them and hopefully very soon will share a very small portion with you. 
We also soon noticed our sweet little kitten MerryBell was getting a bloated looking tummy.  We wormed her hoping for good results, but nothing changed.  Her little belly just got larger.  After a trip to the Vet, we brought her home with a death sentence.  She had a virus and there was nothing that could be done for her.  My girls have been such good little nurses over these past few days.  They brought her food and water every 30 mins to an hour, and loved on her.  She passed this morning.  It was a hard morning.  Love and tears during those final moments filled our living room as she took her last breaths.  I know it's just a cat, but she was part of our family and our girls loved her dearly.  We had her exactly 1 year to the day.  How ironic is that.  She was a rescue kitten, we gave her a home and loved on her for a whole year!  Who knows, had she not been rescued her little life would probably been much shorter.  We hope to get another kitten in the  distant future, but for now, we will just cherish memories of our sweet MerryBell.

I plan on getting back to Friday Finds next week.  I might even make a few post before then!  Hope you all have a great weekend, it's gonna get cold out there, maybe even some ice!  Stay warm and stay safe and come back real soon!

Week 8's challenge was "True Happiness".   After a week of being sick with a cold, Felicity cried off and on through the night Friday.  She woke up Saturday morning holding her ear crying.  After taking care of her earache, she played the rest of the day.  She seemed well enough to go to church on Sunday  morning and played through the afternoon with her sisters.  Soon after services started Sunday evening she stood up from her spot on the pew.  I looked over at her as she walked toward me with big tears in her eyes.  As I picked her up and set her in my lap she asked, " Why do you never buy watermelon for me anymore?"  (haha)    She was just exhausted and emotional I think.   However, after church we had to stop by the little store down the road to get this sweet girl some watermelon!  This, I believe, is "True Happiness" ! haha

 A couple of months ago I picked up the book, "The Power of a Positive Mom" at a thrift shop.  I read a chapter here and there when I get a free moment.  I have received a lot of good encouragement thus far.    Anyhow, I read chapter 9 today, titled "The Ladies Pity Party, Don't Accept The Invitation".  Wow!  This was a really good chapter!!  I just want to share a few lines from this with you.
(these are taken straight from this book, I did not write these)
~Life is not always fair.  It's not always easy, especially for mothers.  But you and I have a choice each day whether to wallow in self-pity or put our trust in God as he works in our lives.  
~A third reason we complain is to get attention.  It's not always popular to sound like a Pollyanna, pointing out the positive.  But when we sing that all-too-familiar tune, "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen," our friends rush to our side to give us sympathy to be reciprocated when it's their turn to whine!
(My words here: She talks about the Israelites and all their complaining.  Lack of water, lack of food, lack of meat, and hardships. They grumbled and complained to the point of saying they'd be better off back in Egypt as slaves. She pointed out that not only did God provide for them in all these things, their shoes did not even wear out during their journey.  Then she points out God's reaction to their groanings in Numbers 11:1-2.  God heard them and it says, " His anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp."  Now read what the author wrote in the book "The Power of a Positive Mom".)
~God was not at all pleased with the Israelites' constant complaining.  ...Instead of focusing on the great miracles God had done on their behalf and His goodness toward them in securing their freedom, they focused on what was bad about the situation.
~Are we able to see God's provision for us?  Do we see his hand at work for our good?  Or are we so focused  on our problems that all we can do is complain?
~The question is not "What are you going through?" but "What is your perspective and attitude in the process?"
~(Read Hebrews 12:2) Jesus was able to endure more than you and I will ever have to-all because he had His eyes focused on the joy of securing our salvation.  If we are going to be positive moms, we need to check our focus. ...."Stop Whining!"
~The truth is, our contentment is independent of what we have or who surrounds us.  Contentment is the opposite of self-pity.  If our hearts are content because we trust in God as our loving provider, then we'll tend to keep our eyes off our troubles.  But if we dwell on our wants or our difficulties (great or small), we will lose sight of the provisions God is granting us.
~(read Job 1:21 and think about the trials of Job)
~Contentment is not based on what you have; it is based on how you choose to view life.  It is an issue of the heart.
~(read Philippians 4:11-13 and think about the trails of Paul) Now if Paul could say this from his prison cell, I wonder if we could say it from our laundry room?
~1.)Recognize who the enemy is. Satan... 
2.)Change your perspective. Consider what is good... 
​3.)Ask God to give you strength. Based on Philippians 4:11-13...
~(after a story about kids whining and complaining about everything, she says this) Believe me, God understands.  His children frequently complain and grumble and whine, oblivious to all the good he is doing in their lives.  May you and I not be those kinds of kids!

Pretty good stuff!!  What I got from this chapter; Quit whining and be content!   :)

Note:  By recommending this book I am not suggesting you follow the author, nor am I saying I agree with everything she has ever said.  I had never heard of her prior to the title of the book catching my eye on the book shelf.    Like I always say when I recommend a book, I am a strong KJV girl.  This book uses other translations.  I encourage you to read this book, however, pull out your Bible and read the verses for yourself to see what it says!  I would never recommend a book that changes doctrine of God's Word.   If I read a book, for instance this one, that has a good message, and sticks with the teaching of the Word,  I will share it with you!   Happy Reading!

I don't know if it's the coffee or the cup that I like best!  I LoVe cute coffee cups!  And like they say, "Life happens, COFFEE helps!"  (I know, I know, coffee is not a food! To me it is, and, well, "But First Coffee"!!

Oh!!!  Btw... this week I reeeeeaaaallllyyy wanted Sam to take me to All About Cha because I was reeeeaaaalllyyy craving their coffee.  We've only been there 4 or 5 times, I have to give in to my cravings every now and a then!!  However, we are really not eating out or getting out for that matter with all this flu junk going around so rampantly.  This lead me to searching for a recipe, thus feeding my crave for yummy coffee!  Here is a link to one I found and have already made.  Believe me, it's comfort food!    Link: Yummy Salted Caramel Mocha Latte           

​WARNING: This comfort food may lead to an addiction.

I have not had my sewing machine out in a very long time.  Well, it's always out, it sits on a little cabinet next to the dinner table.  Anyhow, it actually got used tonight!!  The girls and I picked out this fabric awhile back.  I wanted some flannel skirts for them as they are a bit warmer than other fabrics.  They ooggled over this puppy dog print, so we got enough for all three of them.  These skirts take 30 mins or less depending on how many interruptions you have. 1 down, 2 to go!  Hoping I can get a little photoshoot  of the girls wearing them in a day or two!  btw... that old ironing board... well, it was my granny Joy's and Grandpa's.  I know, it looks really old, it is!  I just can't get myself to replace it!!

When I look at this photo of my baby girl, I can't believe how tall she looks.  Then I remind myself, she is that tall!  She'll be 6 yrs old this year, seems so crazy!  

We live in Oklahoma.  Most winters our cold days just come and go.  However, this year it has been cold, day after day after day.  We live in a quiet little neighborhood that is lucky enough to have a nice trail to walk/jog on, and it has a bridge with a creek running under it.   It never entered my mind the need to talk to the kids about playing on frozen bodies of water.  Well, Wednesday the girls and I headed off to church around 4:30 to attend our monthly ladies meeting.  I left Asa at home with Sam as they would be heading to the church to join us in a couple of hours.  (Asa has a group of kids he hangs out with in the neighborhood.  He is now a teen and we are having a lot of fun.)  Anyhow, with all that said, Thursday, Asa and I were driving down the road and he says with great excitement, "Mom, my friends and I did the coolest thing yesterday while you were at church!"  He was so excited to tell me all about this great adventure he had! haha   He went on, "We went ice skating on the lake!"  "What?"  I exclaimed!  "Yeah, we went ice skating on the lake!"  "What lake?" I asked.  "Oh, the creek I mean, the one behind the house."   "Have you lost your mind, that is crazy, I thought you knew better than that?"  I said with frustration.  "It was safe mom, no one got hurt."  "How do you know it was safe?" I asked.  "We threw a big rock over the bridge and it just chipped a little ice, but the ice did not crack so we knew it would not brake."  "Asa, do you realize some areas of a lake or creek might be safe but others are not and there is no way for you to know where the weak spots are." I told him.   We had a long conversation about this and how it is never safe.  Sam and I found a video on youtube for him to watch that explained the dangers of playing on ice.  I'm not sure that he is convinced but at least he can't ever say that I did not warn him.  I don't know whether to sigh "BOYS!" or "TEENAGERS!"    (side note:  I am a helicopter mom and will say, the creek behind the house is not real deep.  It just worried me that Asa really had himself convinced that playing on the icy creek is safe.  This opened my eyes to  a lot of things I need to make my kids aware of.  I guess I just assume things are common sense and they know.)

So a few weeks ago I found this book at our local thrift shop.  I sat it aside and forgot about it somehow in the mix of the hustle and bustle of the holidays.  Well, today I had six hours of sitting in the car, so I brought this little 'find' with me.   With no kids in the car, which is a rare experience for us, I read most of it aloud to Sam as he was cruising along.  We laughed and agreed with so much of what the author writes.  Maybe Sam can now see I am not the only crazy homeschool mom in existence.  It was good to see my feelings and reactions are so common with other hsm's.  I am a very strong KJV girl!  That is the only thing I would change about this book, I do highly recommend "LIES Homeschooling MOMS Believe"  by Todd Wilson.  You will not waste your time reading it!  ...and if you're reading this and you are a homeschool mom, keep your head up, sometimes it's hard, but like this book says,
" No one homeschools because it is easy.  Most do it because they think it is the best.  That should comfort you, because the best things are almost always the hardest things.  Think about it.  The things that are easiest are usually not very good for you, but those things that take blood, sweat and tears are worth everything.  So take heart.  Homeschooling must be really, really good because it's really, really hard."  ~Todd Wilson

Asa had so much fun singing in the choir at church camp back in the summer, he decided to find a choir to sing in.  We enrolled him in the Central Oklahoma Homeschool Choir in August and these kids have practiced their Christmas songs ever since!  They did a wonderful performance, I was truly impressed with the choir and the instructors!  So happy Asa has the opportunity to be a part of this choir!

He had lots of friends and family come out to hear them sing!  I wish I had gotten of photo of everyone.  Here are some that we got before they snuck off!!  Thanks all of you for coming out and supporting my boy!!

The first photo was of the 11, 12 and 13 year olds.  On the last song of the concert, all ages of the COHC came out and sang.  It was spectacular!  Way to go COHC!!!

A few weeks ago the hubs and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary!!  love my guy to the moon and back!

Yes, we take our own photos!  Our kids help out sometimes, they are going to be great photographers when they grow up!!

This has been a project going on for several months.  As I got a chance I peeled the paper from our bedroom wall.  I've been so tired of staring at ugly gluey walls!

I tried several things I found on pinterest for removing this stuff and the best I found was just a water bottle and a putty knife. Spray it down and let it set for 2 or 3 minutes, then remove the top layer and repeat removing the second layer!   Really not too hard, just time consuming.  And I am happy to say it is all gone!!!!!   (happy face here)

Below is our room, wall paper removed and a bit drab!  But, Guess What!?!?

I talked my sweet hubs into getting paint!!!  And it is so refreshing now!  I am in LoVe with our super cute room!  I will be taking one room at a time and giving them all a face lift!!  We purchased paint from H-I-S Coatings on Reno.  They sell recycled paint in 4 different colors.  This one is a beige, I got an olive green color for the living area! eeek!!! I am so excited to get this place looking funtastic!!  By the way, they sell the paint in 5 gallon buckets for $35! yep, that's right $35 for a 5 gallon bucket!!!  (another happy face here!)  If you know me, you know I LoVe a bargain!!

Last weekend a storm came through and left us quiet a bit of rain and left us without power for two days.  With the clouds and no electricity, inside the house was kinda dark and dreary.  This took us outside to play in the puddles.

These girls have so much fun together!  Asa did not come out and enjoy the puddles, I'm guessing he is much to old and cool for this now. hehe

After playing in the puddles we decided to get out for a bite to eat.  We took a drive down town.  What else is there to do, right?!

Filled our bellies up at Zio's and then headed back to the house.

We even found a way to keep the coffee addiction going! :)

Spring Lovin'

At our last ladies meeting at church, I gave the devotion.  My devotion was titled "Will's".  I'm not going to share the thing to it's entirety on here, just thought I would give you a little something to read when you have an extra minute or two.  
First of all, "Who Will?"  Psalm 94:16 says, Who will rise up for me against the evildoers? or who will stand up for me against the workers of iniquity. 
The answer we should have to "Who Will" is found in Isaiah 6:8.  Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?  Then said I, Here an I: send me.
Secondly, "I Will"  
Psalm 5:3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.
Psalm 18:1-2  I will love thee, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.
Psalm 139:14  I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.Psalm 145:1-2 I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever.
Psalm 146:2 While I live will I praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.

This is just a few "I Will's" found in the book of Psalms.  I pulled up (on a Bible app) all of the "I Will's"  in Psalms(KJV) and read them.  During our devotion each lady read several of the really good ones, there are so many, it's hard to pick just a few! Take the time to do it sometime it will be a blessing to you!

Thirdly, "The Lord Will"  Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Isaiah 41:10  Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.

Psalm 6:9 The Lord hath heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer.
Psalm 29:11  The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.

Fourthly, "We Will"  Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Lastly, Make sure you "I Will's are the Lord's Will's"
Satan's "I Will"s" got him into trouble in Isaiah 14:13-14
James 4:5 says,  For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Ephesians 5:17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.

​I hope this little study blesses you as much as it did me!  Have a blessed day!

My poor sick baby girl...​

During all of our sickness I sold 13 skirt sets out of my Etsy shop!  Sewing, sewing, sewing!

I'm trying some new things with my essential oils!  I made a few sugar scrubs and bath salts to give as gifts.  I also made some bath bombs that I LoVe!  When I get them perftected and get some feedback from those who were gifted with them I might put a few up for sale in my shop!!

Miss Felicity got a new baby doll with her Christmas money!  She loves her so much!​

We do not make Indonesian food often, it was picked for Christmas dinner.  However, we were sick and had to have it a few days late!  so yummy...

We got several new games for Christmas!  I love watching my kids play together!

A little road trip to my mom and dads after Christmas!  Had such a blessed time with my family!

We tried to keep her outside, but its so cold!  She is now inside and in training! Such a sweet pup!
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