Our week!

Our new home ...

This is the view from the pool looking toward the entrance ... we drive up that hill to our apartment home!

Grant, Harrison, Shelby, & Sarah Jane as we celebrated Jack's b'day a little early week before last when my sister came for a brief visit! What a treat!

On Sunday, July 16th my Dad turned 65! We celebrated at Outback! At that time we didn't know we would be celebrating Jack's birthday again before they left (Dad & Mom extended their stay), so the cake was for both of them! :)

Jack chose the same cake for his birthday! We started our week by going to a church across town. Nice, but we probably won't go back! Monday we celebrated Jack's 3rd b'day! WOW! We picked up a cookie cake at Kroger, went through the drive through at McDonald's for Happy Meals for the kids, and burger for John, and I got a great salad - I was really impressed! I am not a big McDonald's fan! We got a good bit done on Monday ... the rest of the week was full of miscellaneous things! Getting new cell phones, getting my DSL up so I can blog (HA), and trying to get everything in its place so we can start school on Monday! Added to all of that we had workers here on Tuesday and Wednesday tearing out the floor in our half-bath to replace the floor under the tile and relay tile on it. They still have to come back and replace some molding pieces they broke in the process. They were very friendly and did a good job - but we had extra people in the house! On Thursday, our maintenance man was here to work on the list of things I turned in that needed repair upon move in! I still have a couple of lingering things Mr. JJ or Mr. Bill need to take care of before I am completely satisfied! Friday, we picked up John from work and headed to the mall in Franklin - that was the closest JC Penny's that I had to order curtains from, and they were ready for pick-up! I will blog more about the apartment and send pics of the rooms and the outside soon! (Jack calls it the repartment!) Today I took care of some banking and we cleaned out the master closet! It had not been organized yet, but it is now!!!!!!!!!

Tomorrow John will go to a new church and we have decided for the rest of the family to have church at home. We used this method some when looking for churches once we moved to Allen. I plan to have Sunday School in the morning with the children and then to watch FBC-Parker on the internet! We use to do this when we practiced for church, so this should work until we can find a church that we want the family to try! It is a scary thing to take my children into some churches not knowing the people or what is being taught etc. Please pray that this is a quick process!
Well, I must get to bed! The last pic is of the fountain by the pool and at the base of our hill. We love to watch the ducks and geese. Have a blessed Lord's day to all of you!

Happy Birthday, JACK!

Happy Birthday, Jack! I am sitting here waiting for the one picture I took of my son on his 3rd birthday to load ... it is taking FOREVER, and I am still not sure if it is going to work! SO, the picture may have to wait until later in the week! Jack did have a special day! He was thrilled with picking up a store-bought birthday cookie, getting a McDonald's Happy Meal, and going to the park! WOW! We enjoyed it too! More to report later! I will try to start blogging more! Miss you all!

Laugh, Cry, Pray

Well ... today was a BIG day! We closed on our house today! We are now living in someone else's home! HA! (Mr. Mike, our realtor brought that to our attention!)








Today was a special day as well (I can't come out and say S-A-D)! As I fought back tears every time I spoke with my dear friend, Tamra, on the phone, I had to thank God for her friendship - even though good byes are hard to say! So, Tamra, this blog post is for you! :)















We also had some funny moments! After we said good bye to our "middle children" (Jack & Grant headed to Monroe with my Mom) ... we packed and took care of some business! Here Daddy was trying to put Michael in our laundry shelf for safe keeping!




Our sweet friends also brought us supper! My favorite!!! Thank you! This picture was taken to make sure I had a pic of Cait in Jack's clothes! You can only imagine why that happened! That is ok!

Well, I have almost finished packing the kitchen - just the cleaning supplies to take care of and a couple of things from the dish washer! We pick up the truck in the morning and will start the process of trying to fit the rest of our "worldly goods" onto this 26' (I think) truck! I make this one last request for prayer before we leave ... our safety, our sanity :), and that we will honor the Lord with all of our actions and attitudes as we move through the next few days!

PS - I made a promise to blog pics and updates regularly - give me a chance to get set up and I am going to try to fill in some of the holes from the last month or so! Love you gals!

June Trip to Nashville - A little late getting this posted! It has been saved since June 3rd!

This is the "ride" I had in TN last time! The lady didn't have what I reserved, so she asked if a PT cruiser was ok! So, Michael and I sported around in this! :)

After we looked at several apartments we settled in our budget hotel ... strolled next door to O'Charley's for supper, and then took a brief walk! This boy (and Mommy) were tired! Isn't that a sweet yawn! Michael was so good on the trip! I thought he would be difficult without his siblings to entertain him, but he played so much by himself. I guess he was so thankful to not be on a plane or in the car that he loved playing in the middle of a bed by himself!

This is the road we will travel frequently in the Bellevue area of Nashville where we will live. Does this look like Texas? HA! When all was said and done at the end of this trip ... I have narrowed it down to two apartments. Thank you, Lord for a successful and safe trip!

PS - Happy Father's Day, John ... sorry I missed it! Love you!

Update

Well ... life is moving right along! If you need/want encouragement in relationships, visit my dear friend's blog - Helpmate First, but if you want to know how it is going selling half (not quite) of what we own and packing progress - you have come to the right place!

Today - We finished listing our big items to sell on craig's list. Did laundry! Prepared for the moving estimator guy to come give us a quote! Think we are going to stick with doing it ourselves. We started packing Shelby's room at the end of the day! We sold two cars seats, a lawn mower, and had people come look at other items! WOW! And to top it off - my cloth diapers that I used mostly with Shelby and a little with Grant are up to $50+ on ebay. COOL! All of those extra sells help! John also started working on the items he has to get done on the house that we agreed to repair before closing! A few small things - thankfully he is handy around the house! Today our house should be marked "contract pending" - so we shouldn't be showing it any more!

Yesterday - We finished cleaning up the garage from having our garage sale this weekend! We got all of the boxes to be moved up and out of the way. Gave the rest of our garage sale stuff away and took inventory of what we have left to get rid of and pack from the garage! We met with our realtor about the inspection! With that out of the way ... we are on our way to closing. Thank the Lord for a quick process with all of this!

Upcoming dates:
Every day - packing ... I now have 13 days to pack 12 areas/rooms. I will have to update you on the progress!
July 2 - John and his brother, David, leave on Sunday to drive to Nashville.
July 5 - John starts his new job!
July 11 - John flies home!
July 12 - We close on the house. My mom and big boys may head to Monroe.
July 13 - Start packing the moving truck.
July 14 - Finish packing - drive to Memphis (hopefully)!
July 15 - Move into apartment in Nashville, TN

I plan to have some play dates in there some where! My mom should be coming the weekend before closing. If anything changes, I will try to post! Please keep us (me) in your prayers as I work to accomplish this BIG goal! Hope to see you all soon!

Moving Plans & Progress

As sad or happy as it may be some days ... I want to try to keep everyone updated with our timeline for moving! If interested, check out our to see what is going on! I am heading back to bed now ... even though I could blog so much about what is going on ... but I need to sleep! :) More later!

Our first box is ready to go!

Home Again!

Well ... I am home for now! Praise the Lord! I have missed my sweet husband, my children, and my sweet friends! I hope to find time to blog about my trip and update you all soon! I pray that you all are having a wonderful week!

Trip

Well, I am heading back to Nashville in the morning to find us a place to live! FUN! I won't answer my phone much because I will be roaming ... if you need me, please leave a message or send me a text message! If I can I will call you back with a calling card - the old fashion way! HA!

We had a great week at VBS! John helped us get breakfast and get out the door every morning! Then ... he would prepare the house to be shown if necessary! It was shown 3 times on Wednesday, twice on Thursday, and there has been an appointment made for Saturday! Yeah! We know the Lord knows exactly who needs our home, and He will provide! Have a blessed weekend! I may get to keep in touch, but maybe not! Blessings, Christi

Life is sweet!

Since we have been back from the wedding ... life has been going 100 mph! :) I want to slow down a little and preserve some of these memories on my blog! So, bare with me as I try to back track a little in the next few blogs!

BUT ... I have to start with today! We were finally able to make it over to a friend's house to see a 3 day old colt! Shelby has been itching all week to get over there! Here are the pictures! Enjoy! Thanks to our sweet friends from church for inviting us!

The Big Day!

Here are just a few pics from the BIG day!

I hope to add more to flickr soon!

If you were at the wedding and have pics that I don't - please send them to me!

Danielle's cousins ... Katelyn & Patrick

Dancing!

The cookie boy, Jack!

Danielle and Rocky dancing!

Danielle & Paige!

Sunflowers

Before we left for our trip last week ... this is what we left in our back yard! How cool! We are just amazed at how God creates such a beautiful flower from such a small seed! HE is so awesome!

Michael

Michael was sitting on the bed playing while everyone else was resting today.

I started taking some snap shots of him sitting up and after a couple I got the look in the second picture! We think this is hilarious!

Anniversary / Trip

Well, I haven't flown in over a year ... and I have NEVER flown with an infant. What an experience! Everything but the baby had to go through the x-ray machine (stroller, car seat, etc.), and one time Michael was asleep - so I had to move him around a little so the man could see there was nothing between the two of us! Other than the bulkiness of getting through security - everything was fine! Our flight was on time, getting the rental car was uneventful, our suitcase was there, and we headed out!
We headed to downtown Nashville and picked up a burger at Wendy's to split - because we really wanted better food, but didn't have time. We found where John needed to be, we ate, John headed out, I nursed, and then Michael and I went to find the hotel. Too early to check-in, but there was a Lifeway Christian Store across the street (actually there huge main office was there too) so we went to browse! That is where I found the perfect anniversary gift for my husband! I also picked up a new cd that was on sale! We had nothing to listen to in the rental car, plus I thought it would be a good souvenir of our trip! After our shopping ... Michael fell asleep in the car, so I did some sight seeing! We later picked John up and headed to the hotel. We unpacked and stretched out a little and got a plan for the evening. We headed out to the Gaylord Opryland Hotel to look around. On the way we decided we wanted fish for supper, so we went to ... Cock of the Walk - one of our childhood favorites! Fried fish and fried pickles - yummy!

After dinner we made it to the Opryland: hotel, mall (like Grapevine Mills - but larger - I think), and of course Opryland. We only went in the hotel, but it is MASSIVE! The other two Gaylord Opryland hotels in Grapevine, TX and in FL will fit inside this one in Nashville! There is a riverboat ride inside and over 2,000 rooms! I couldn't believe! This is where the picture below was taken! I saw these horses and had to take a picture for my daughter that loves horses sooooo much! This was outside a little shop inside the hotel! The inside shopping area of the hotel reminded me of the French Quarter in New Orleans.

We finally headed back to the hotel with a tired baby! The hotel was out of cribs, so Michael got to sleep on a chair! Thank the Lord he doesn't flip and flop much!!!!!!

Saturday morning we took our time. We had the wonderful cinnamon rolls that are on the breakfast bar at the Holiday Inn Express! We hadn't had those in a while! I looked up some info on the internet, so we could head out! We did some sight seeing and went to historic downtown Franklin, TN. What a beautiful place! We ate lunch at McAllister's deli and then headed to the airport. We stood in line - where someone had left a guitar case! So, they brought in the bomb sniffing dog before they would remove it! How eventful! We flew stand-by on an earlier flight so we could get home before bedtime! I wanted a picture of Michael on his first plane trip - this is what I got! We were landing in Dallas and he was finally conked out! Whew!

Everyone survived at home - all because of some sweet friends and a worn out aunt and uncle! Thanks to everyone that helped us out! We had a great time!

Our 11th Wedding Anniversary

This weekend we spent Friday night in Nashville partly to celebrate our wedding anniversary. While we were there, I found this neat framed poem for our anniversary! How appropriate ... so I wanted to share it with you!

Happy Anniversary, John! I love you!

I’d Marry You Again

With tiny tears that glistened,
my eyes were fixed on you,
and thinking of the life we’d
share we softly said, “I do”.

Our hearts were knit together
from the time that we first met,
and memories were gathered
that we never will forget.

While daily living life with you,
you saw the real in me,
and still you chose acceptance,
a loving mystery.

With many happy times gone by
and others when we cried,
some days we’d share so endlessly,
while other days we’d hide.

With all the ups and downs
we’ve had in learning to be friends,
I know that in this heart of mine,
I’d marry you again.

by: Anne Petersonterson

Can you tell the tuxedo needs some adjusting?

Our garden is growing ...

Our garden is growing ... we usually overcrowd our seeds ... just hoping something will come up! Not very smart ... hugh? So, with my clippers I thinned out our row of pea plants and let the kids pull the pods off! They thought that was sooooooo cool! Shelby and Jack went to work, but Grant didn't like the smell!

Two peas in a pod!!!!!!!!!!!!

Meal Swap

Helpmate First: You know you're a MOM when...

Helpmate First: You know you're a MOM when...

Happy Mother's Day!

The weekend begins ...

Friday: Daddy calls on his way home from work on Friday to ask what I had going on tonight! The usual! "Well," he said, "I intend on giving you some 'mommy time' this evening." I told him I would take him up on it!

At dinner we gave Michael his first baby cereal!

He wasn't sure about it, but he is getting the hang of it now! I did help get everyone settled before I left for a couple of hours, but it was good to get out ... and the moon was beautiful!
Saturday: Michael and I ended up sleeping in ... until around 8:45! I couldn't believe! Daddy cooked breakfast, pancakes or course, and we had a family morning! Shelby, Michael, and I went to a baby shower in the afternoon. Soon after we got home we headed out to dinner for my "Mother's Day" celebration! My choice ... we went to Macaroni Grill!

Waiting patiently on the steps at Macaroni Grill!

We have learned our lesson over a couple of "out-to-dinner" nights ... if you are a family of 6 ... CALL AHEAD! We waited for over an hour for a table - and we arrived there at 5:45! We made the most of more family time ... as you can see in the picture below! We ate calamari, pizza, chicken strips, lobster ravioli, and some WONDERFUL bread! Plus some good mac-n-cheese for Jack (some of which landed on the floor) and some tiramisu for Daddy and Mommy and ice cream for the children (which Grant's bowl hit the floor when he was finish and broke into MANY pieces - he was heart broken and embarrassed). With all of that - we actually had an enjoyable time! Can you believe! Michael slept through almost the whole meal! We came home and hit the bed!

Sunday: My family took good care of me today! We had biscuits for breakfast and had everyone dressed to head to church on time! I was given some special gifts that I had been wanting! Some to make being a "mommy" less stressful (a lock for the back yard gate) and some to make being "mommy" more fun (garden clippers and a blender)! We had a special morning with some special cards!

The Lord has blessed me with some precious children!

Thank you, Lord!

Our family of SIX! WOW! Thank you, Lord!

Please continue to give me the strength to be the mommy you would have me to be! Lord, thank you for sweet "mommy" friends You have blessed me with - I look forward to fellowshipping with them in the near future! :)

MandyBee: A wonderful story . . . .

Our sweet, LONG-time friend, Mandy, is engaged! Yeah! Read the wonderfully romantic story here!
MandyBee: A wonderful story . . . .

Our cousins!

My children LOVE their cousins ... we miss you guys! See you soon!

Ben & Danielle

This is a blog for my niece and her fiance! I will be posting about them and the fun things from now until wedding time! Check it out if you like! Ben & Danielle

Spunky's Contest

I had to enter the contest! See below!

Spunky is giving away a Benz Microscope and Apologia Biology Set this week. Click Here to get the details.

Founders Ministries Blog: The Purpose Driven Puritan

If you need a smile or chuckle today ... read this ...

Founders Ministries Blog: The Purpose Driven Puritan

New Orleans

Being a Louisiana girl ... I had to post this ... it made me smile!

Math-U-See

Some of you have asked me about the math curriculum I use.

Finally, here's the information:
Math-U-See website.
Yahoo Group for Math-U-See This site answer many questions, and you can post your own!

Math-U-See will be at Homeschool Book Fair on May 12th & 13th in Arlington.
Math-U-See will be at NTHEN Homeschool Conference and Bookfair on August 18th & 19th in Plano.

"Mommy & Me" Tea

Shelby and I had a wonderful time at our "Mommy & Me" Tea on Saturday. My sweet friend, Tamra, planned a wonderful time for a group of us to share at the Into My Garden Tea Room in Plano, TX! I was able to talk about one of our favorite books, Keepers at Home, and encourage us all to spend time training our daughters in the skills that we find important in our Christian lives, and some skills just to make a "well-rounded" person! :) Here are a few pictures from our tea, if you would like to see more - click on the flickr button in the right margin or click here.

The girls sitting down for tea!

Cait and Tamra

Shelby

Ladies having their lunch.

The girls' plates!

Co-Op & Once A Month Cooking

Well, some of us have expressed that it is getting to be about that time again! Yes, our freezers are getting a little bare! I have come across some ideas that we might could use to change up our system, if we choose! I am going to list some ideas and some extra info on them! Please look at it when you can so we can see if any of these new ideas would work, or if we need to stick with the old day-long Saturday cooking day! :)
Options:

1. Cook one Saturday like we have done before!
2. Everyone pick a meal and make a double-batch for each family and have an exchange day to distribute. We can total the expenses and even out the cost.
3. Co-Op Cooking: Southern Living explains one way how to co-op cook. Introducing Supper Swapping, or Co-op Cooking is another take on co-op cooking by Trish Berg. Co-op Cooking: A New Saving Strategy is another explanation.

Lastly, I have found a neat recipe program that makes serving changes etc. I had one of these years ago that was a gift, but this one is FREE! So far I like it!

Let me know what you think! I am open to using the same system or trying an abbreviated new system (a meal or two a week etc.). The local Super Suppers place is over $100 for 6 meals. The meals are designed to feed 4 to 6 people! We may could get two meals from one depending on what it is, but that is more expensive than what we are used to. If anyone else has any other ideas, please let us know!

Hope to hear from you ALL!

Cultivating Peace

Well, I haven't been able to read it all, but I think I have found a good article on cultivating peace in the home. Tamra keeps referring to a time when Mrs. Judy spoke to the moms on cultivating calm in the home. I hope this article proves to be along the same tone as what Mrs. Judy taught. Let me know what you think when you have time to read!
On the bottom of the article they recommend a book that has helped me over the years, The Excellent Wife. If any of you ever want to borrow it, please let me know! It is along the lines of Don't Make Me Count to Three, except it is for wives relating to their husbands instead of children. I learn something new and beneficial every time I reread the book!

Pots & Pans

Pretend play is so fun! I love for my children to make up fantasy stories and also act out real life possibilities! These stories are usually a good gauge as to what they are absorbing from life! (and me and my actions - scary!) Jack doesn't get as many opportunities to initiate things like this because the other kids are usually one step ahead of him, but the other day he decided he wanted our "pots and pans" basket down. He proceeded to pick up trains and train tracks by himself so he could move onto something else! When he dumped out the "pots and pans" basket, he immediately flipped the basket so he could set the table for a snack for his older brother and sister! They would come check on him and he would say, "it's almost ready." How neat to watch Jack serve his siblings, even if it is pretend play!