Today I picked up the boys and was just about home when we saw an accident with an ambulance just past our house. In true small town fashion, I drove up to the police man and asked if everyone was OK. He said yes, someone just lost control on the wet pavement and couldn't make the ninety degree turn and went off the road and hit a tree. We turned the corner to head back to our house when Mason said, "Mom, we should pray for those people." Andrew agreed and we said a prayer for them right then. My heart was full of joy at the sound of their prayer. I love those moments when I get a glimpse of what the Lord is doing in their hearts. When the days can be filled with such trivial things like, clean your room, stop arguing with your brother, do your homework, etc. it is so good to have that moment when you see the most important relationship in their lives is growing. Today I am thankful.

Life with boys...

This is what I found on my bed this morning just before we jumped in the car to head off to school. Maybe Andrew was doing his best to try to replace the little blue throw pillow I let him take to school for nap time (how could I resist when he asked for it because it smelled like me). This new look could grow on me...GO STEELERS ;)

This Old House...

is beginning to feel like a home. The sheet rock is up and finished. Mark is working to complete the trim work now. This is a detailed process for anyone but especially for my man. He is very detailed and wants to make sure this step is done right since (in his words) he will have to look at it every day and does not want someone's sloppy job to drive him crazy. Let's just say that some subcontractors are not as committed to doing a job as well as he would like. The guy that did our cabinets is a definite exception. He did a wonderful job making these fabulous cabinets with inlaid doors.

Here are a few shots of the kitchen after the beautiful cabinets were installed. We plan to paint the wall cabinets white and finish the base cabinets and pantry a deep mahogany.

THE MICROWAVE WILL GO HERE UNDER THE COUNTER BESIDE A BANK OF DRAWERS CONTAINING EVERYDAY DISHES TO GIVE THE BOYS EASY ACCESS.

THIS IS JUST HALF OF MY WALL WITH THE BIG WINDOW. JUST PICTURE A FARM SINK AND THESE BEAUTIFUL COUNTER TOPS

THIS RANGE WILL GO ON THIS WALL WITH A SUBWAY TILE BACK SPLASH.


THIS REFRIGERATOR WILL GO NEXT TO THE PANTRY AND THE ISLAND WILL BE WHITE WITH A LITTLE PREP SINK AND HOPEFULLY A BUTCHER BLOCK TOP.

Can you tell the kitchen is my favorite part of any home. It is the heart of every home. I can't wait to cook our first big dinner in this new kitchen. I still need to pick out cabinet hardware. I am having second thought about these cabinet latches. Although I LOVE the look of them, I don't think they are very practical. It might get old having to twist the latch to open the cabinet all the time. Any ideas on an alternative? I just haven't found anything else I love.

So that's it for this episode of This Old House. Join us next time when the cabinets are finished, the trim & doors are painted and finished, and I take a week off from work to PAINT EVERY ROOM OF THE HOUSE! Yeah, that should be fun. I'll welcome anyone who wants to come join me. I'll even buy you a paint roller :-)

House Update

I know a house update is overdue, but hey, so is the completion of this house ;-) I will head to the house to take a few shots of the progress but I'll give you a little sneak peak

Andrew was helping me scrape the drywall mud off the floor so we can be ready for the floors to be put down in a few of weeks. Just take a peak at those BEAUTIFUL kitchen cabinets behind him! We will have them painted and stained in a couple of weeks as well. That reminds me of the move Money Pit when the workers tell them everything will take "two weeks". We should rent that movie to find our sense of humor as we finish up this project. I'll post more pics of the progress in a couple of days. I know, such a teaser I am!

THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR BEGINS!

As I have admitted to before, I am a nerd and I now embrace it :-). I love it when school starts. I love the smell of new school supplies, the slight butterflies in the stomach & packing a big lunch on that first day. All of those things just signal the start of a whole new year of new experiences and skills to master.

Here are my little men off to their great adventure.

Andrew settles into his spot on his first day.
Andrew is in Kindergarten this year so for him this is a big change. Can't you just see the slight apprehension on his face? He has had a couple of sad moments in class over the last few days but he has gotten a smiley face every day this week so far. Transition is a little difficult for my littlest boy so I know to give him a bit more time to decide things will be OK. He loves his teacher and has fun in class, he just doesn't like the days I don't pick him up right after school. Just like me, he likes to know the plan and stick to it so when I change things around by picking him up some days and not on others it just overwhelms my little planner. I pray that this year sparks a love of learning in Andrew. That is the only goal I set for him this year.

DOUBLE DIGIT BIRTHDAY!

It doesn't seem like it has been 10 YEARS since I had my first little boy but it has been exactly that long ago. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I went to the doctor for my regular checkup (9 days before his due date) and the doctor asked me if I had been having any contractions. I told him I had, but nothing intense or consistent. He looked at me and told me I was dilated 4 cm and I should go on over to the hospital. I went to the hospital and about 10 hours later we had our 8 lb 15 oz bundle of joy. We still say he would have been 9 pounds had he not peed on the doctor LOL! His daddy was BEAMING at the sight of his big boy. Like the Grinch, our hearts grew 3 sizes that day and have been bursting at the seams with love for our children ever since. Mason, we have been truly blessed by God to be your parents. We love you so much it isn't possible to put into words. You are growing into such a wonderful, responsible, smart young man. You never stop amazing us with the things you do. The Lord blessed you with a heart like I have never seen! You are so kind and welcoming to everyone you meet. Other people see that about you and LOVE to be around your loving spirit. Remember that your love and kindness is contagious so never hesitate to spread it around. I will never forget this past summer when you stayed at Ronda's while I worked at the office. The kids would just surround you as soon as we walked in the door each day. They couldn't wait to see you and be with you. I hope you see the powerful influence you have on others and use it as God intended. Never forget how special you are! You can guarantee the rest of us never will.

HAPPY 10th BIRTHDAY!

Love,

Mom & Dad

Slug Bug!

Since we spent so much time at the VW dealership this past week, I thought I would let the boys have a bit of fun.

Not many more years and he really will be behind the wheel.

Those little knuckles on the wheel and smile peeking over the edge of the door...I love it :-)

Quiet time Revelations

Sorry to be such a blog slacker lately but I have tried to really give the boys most of my free time since summer is coming to a close and we are busy with so many other things. What free time I do have early in the mornings I have committed to CONSISTENTLY having my quiet time with the Lord. My study Tuesday morning was about asking God to reveal our areas of weakness and for his guidance as we work on them, keeping our hearts and minds open to his molding. As expected, He was faithful giving me the desires of my heart.
I took the boys with me to the VW dealership 70 miles away (the down side to living in the country) to have some warranty work done. After I waited 45 minutes WITH MY TWO BOYS IN A TINY WAITING ROOM for the rental car company to pick us up, I asked the man assisting us if Enter*prise indicated how long it would take he informed me they did not have any cars and they would give me a ride to the other place where they made my reservation. I wanted to scream, "Could someone have told me this 45 MINUTES AGO when you realized Enter*prise was not coming!" but calmly said, "thank you, that would be nice" I think the disappointed look on my face said enough. I kept thinking what I try to teach the boys, if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. I had multiple situations like this for the rest of the day.

• An extremely rude customer in front of me in line berating a sales clerk because SHE...the customer...wrote her check for the wrong amount. I wanted to say A LOT to this lady but instead thanked the sales clerk for being kind even when others are not. Encouragement for her was far more of a witness than slapping that MEAN lady up side the head, my first instinct...no, I really would not have done that but might have had a daydream moment like you see in the movies ;-)
• A sales clerk that could not process a multi purchase discount at Children's Place. You know how I am with a bargain. I kindly refused to pay full price and put the items back.
• Watched my son in disappointment put back scooter that the shelf tag indicated cost $29.99 but rang up $49.99. Since he only had $30 he could not get it and the Toys*R*Us staff refused to go double check the shelf tag.
• THE ICING ON THE CAKE! Watched a 40+ year old seemingly well to do woman at Chuck*E*Cheese put tokens in 4 ski-ball games and take all of the balls (there were only a couple in each game) out of 3 and put them in the game that she played over and over. After the first child put their token in a game with no balls RIGHT NEXT TO HER and showed his disappointment while she said nothing I told the rest of the children they couldn't play those games before they put their money in because SHE took the balls out of the games and they would need to wait for one of the other 2 working games. I could feel my blood boiling and I was on my way to tap her on the shoulder and confront her since she never acknowledged my statements to the children when I had a distinct sensation that I shouldn't do it. It was almost as though someone physically placed their hand on my shoulder and said, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." I turned around and said nothing.

I don't share these stories with you because I handled each situation so nobly. I share them because I know this was the Lord telling me loud and clear to work on my patience, temper, and to be more discerning about times that I should confront people and how I do it. My nature is to pounce on these situations. I usually handle them tactfully but never leave anyone doubting how I feel. I am learning that how I feel is not the most important thing. Feelings fade and if I let the emotion pass, there is usually a better way to handle the situation. More often than not, once the emotion passes, I realize that it doesn't really matter in the big scheme of things. So if you see me out in public and I am confronted with a rudeness, incompetence, etc. and I handle it well...or not so well, give me a wink to encourage me or remind me to strive to do better. I am so thankful for how the Lord is faithful in helping us mature in Him when we seek his hand. Oh, and the silver lining for the day...Target had a scooter for, you guessed it, $30 so my baby did get what he had been saving for.

Flashback Friday

COPS AND ROBBERS!

Fall is just around the corner and I can't wait! I love that season and love Trick or Treating! This was one of my favorite costume theme ideas I had with the boys. Mason, as always, was helping his baby brother by carrying his bag. Now that they are getting older they don't always want to go along with my theme ideas...how dare they form opinions of their own! ;-) I still want them to be Yip Yips this year but they are starting to stray from my great idea. Maybe I can convince them to be the Pest control man and a giant cockroach. How funny would that be!

LEGO-MANIAC

My little Roo is IN LOVE with Lego's these days. He is soooo creative and can come up with so many things that I would never have dreamed of. Legos can be expensive but I have to say we have more than gotten our moneys worth out of each purchase. Both boys have spent HOURS building all sorts of things. (FYI, you can buy large boxes of used Legos on ebay for very reasonable prices.) I had to post this creation...

Big brother has glasses and he thought it would be fun to make some of his own to wear. We laughed and laughed as we all tried them on. This little guy keeps us in stitches!