This day…being a SUPER WIFE is hard work.

What a day! I thought to myself, what can I do to “help” my hubby? He seems a little too stressed – Super-wife to the rescue!

PLAN A: MOW the LAWN – I need the exercise, the kids like to play outside, and it needs to be mowed.

I did the back yard. Did I mention I’m drenched in sweat perspiration?!? It has been a while since I worked out in any fashion plus the humidity today is unbelievable.

I go to our second backyard. Yes, we have two. I see this stump coming up and I decide I can go over it. I have done it before – then the mower goes something like “Ka-Pow” and stops.

I have so much more to do and it is HOT! I need to hurry! I thought to myself – it probably just needs more fuel ignoring the fact that I just hit the stump. So, I go back to the shed and carry the gas can all the way back to the dead mower.

“REVIVE THYSELF” - I preach at it!
“NOOOO – I don’t want to!!!” it screams back to me!
stupid mower!
(we don’t let the kids say the the “s” word but I said it in my mind.)

I humble myself and call my hubby.
“Honey” in my sweet voice, “I think I broke your mower – but I was just trying to relieve some stress.”
He says “thanks for mowing the backyard. – I’ll work on it when I get home.”
In other words, thanks but get your hands off my stuff, in a sweet loving way. I’m done with mowing today – just to let you know.

Maybe I can finish texturing the walls now, change the oil in the car or power wash the roof…How hard can it be? Super-wife is on her way!!!
Okay - reality, maybe I’ll just go take a shower and a quick nap.

Blessings to you!!! You are loved!!!

When a chair is more than a chair…

 
This chair is not just a regular chair.  It was my Grandma’s chair.  It was part of a whole living room set.  One set that still brings laughs to our entire family. 

My Grandma and Grandpa saw things a lot differently than my hubby and I do.  I always ask my husband before I buy ANYTHING unless it is with my “Blow money.”  That is just how we roll and we like it that way. 

My grandparents were not that way.  If my Grandma saw something she liked, she figured she had a job and she would buy it.  My Grandpa felt the same way.  So one day, my Grandma had this delivered much to my Grandpa’s dismay.  $1395 later it is still being talked about. 

He would do the same thing, like trade in a car for a truck with a stick shift, that my Grandma couldn’t drive.  (She still won’t drive a stick unless it is in high gear or low gear.)  They had a very special relationship and they were my favorite people in the world.  My Grandpa passed on many years ago and Grandma can still run circles around me even being 81.

She actually gave me the couch when I first got married.  It had orange flowers on it and was just not my thing.  When I got pregnant, my mom had this recovered for me to a deep green.  It is so comfortable and I still rock my baby in it every night.  I think my Grandma still has all the pieces to the set, somewhere.

I called my Grandma, just to make sure that it is all right that I write about this and she said go ahead.  (I called in the middle of a Texans’ game – so I could probably got anything I wanted.)

Blessings to you!  You are loved!!!

God’s BIG blessing to us!

We are in re-modeling mode. During this mode – we have to do things on a shoe-string budget. Not that we are doing things unsafe or cutting corners that might bring danger to others but sometimes we have do without trim for the time being.
(I really like trim. Trim changes things instantly. Trim can be expensive. Trim is NOT in our budget….yet.)
We went to Lowes on Saturday. My hubby was getting the stuff to finish our drywall and my daughter and I went to find the Paint. (Yes, I meant that to be a capital P. I love Paint.)
I picked out the color that I showed you here. But, I couldn’t remember what finish I wanted. So, I had to wait for my hubby to join us. He finally made it and we picked out eggshell. (I hope it works.)
While we were waiting – I was watching people. The manager at the paint took off his smock and decided to check out. I happened to catch a look at his paint can before he set it on the counter. It said $.50. This was a $28.00 can.
I asked the precious girl who was waiting on me – did that say what I think it did? She said, “Yes.” “We had some new employees that mixed up some paint and with the wrong code and the main manager just said get rid of ALL of it for $.50.”
Let me spell it out ….. FIFTY CENTS for Paint – that I need!
I asked “More??? Do you have any MORE???” She said, “Yes, I have plenty.” I’m thinking why didn’t you tell me before I picked out my paint. I took all 4 cans that were hidden behind the counter. (I couldn’t even see them. You have not because you ask not kept ringing in my ears.) She even mixed them to the colors I wanted.
A light pink (Pink Champagne) for the girls room. = $.50
A dark blue (Calvary) for the boys room. = $.50
A taupe (Sautéed Mushroom) for Master bedroom. = $.50
A deep yellow (Brass Mesh) for the playroom = $.50
and then the (Cider Toddy) for office = $21.95
(It was on sale too.)
Total= $23.95 Savings = $85.80
I truly had tears in my eyes at the counter. The girl knew she had made my day! I think she was in tears too. Who knew paint could bring someone to tears?
I hope you find a deal this week! May the Lord direct your steps to His Glory!
Blessings to you! You are loved!!!

If you would like to see how we used it...go here!!!


BTW - I know this is not a typical DIY but I couldn't resist...what if someone else needed to know this info and I skipped out??? Oh, the guilt! Thanks Kimba for hosting this!

Honest Scrap Award…yippee!

My real life friend, Christina at Butterflykisses and Tasty Dishes gave me this award. That girl has some awesome, easy looking recipes on her blog! YUMMY! She even has one of the local bookstores that carries her yummy treats. It is a blessing to know her.

1.) Say thanks and give a link to the presenter of the award. ~ Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
2.) Share "10 Honest Things" about myself.
3.) Present this award to 7 others whose blogs I find brilliant in content and/or design or those who have encouraged me.
4.) Tell those 7 people they've been awarded HONEST SCRAP and inform them of these guidelines in receiving.
Here's my 10 things ...

• I detest bugs!!! I think this is the reason God gave me boys so that they would kill them if one comes across my path.
• I can’t remember words to songs. I make up my own words to every single song I sing. My hubby on the other hand, just has to hear a song once and it is memorized for eternity.
• I crave quarter pounders from McDonald’s. I love cheeseburgers!
• I can’t stand a dirty microwave, so I keep mine shut. :)
• I feel my kids are smarter than me.
• I want to live on a mountain with a stream running through my land with lots of coniferous trees.
• I don’t like being hot.
• I get really HAPPY, I mean, REALLY HAPPY - finding a good deal on something I was going to buy, anyway.
• I would have loved to go back in the past and see how my Great-Grandma handled 12 children without indoor plumbing.

Okay, for the 7 blogs…in no particular order…

1. Grammy at a visit with Grammy. This happens to be my very own sweet mother-in-law. I feel very privileged to be her daughter and love her VERY much!!! Just between me and you, I think I’m her favorite daughter in law in TEXAS.
2. Vanessa at The Eggpress News. She is a real life friend who has the funniest stories. Look for the one that she sleeps outside her school just to assure a place for her son. I love the dedication!
3. Beckie at Infarrantly Creative, her blog makes me smile. I love learning new things, like painting flowers on fingernails to taking things from the neighbors garbage and transforming it to something beautiful.
4. Carol at Songberries. I don’t even know how I came across her blog one day but her recipes…YUM!
5. Kim at What’s Cooking at my house? This blog is all about REAL recipes that her family likes. I need some tried and true recipes in my life. Plus, her smile is just contagious.
6. Girly Stuff I just love the LIFE in her posts not to mention her decorating skills.
7. Kristi at Kiki’s Corner. She was one of my very first bloggy friends. She has some neat Godly insights to some awesome decor! Why I am at it…she would appreciate some major prayers for her daughter, Rachel, right now. Go to her site and learn more. Their family is constantly in our prayers.

Thanks for coming to my blog! Honestly, I can’t believe all the insight I get daily by visiting so many blogs. If only they would clean up my messes!

Blessings to you!!! You are loved!!!

Winner Winner Winner

The winner for the Totally Toddler Basket is….

Kristy who said she was Following and tweeted.

You have 48 hours to contact me or I’ll have to find someone else…

Blessings to each of you! Thanks for entering! You are loved!!!

Baby Einstein DEAL – Toys R Us

My sweet mother in law called me and told me about this deal!  I thought – that is a very sweet deal especially since my gift closet is getting kind of low on baby gifts.

Look what I got:

plus

 

Total:  $5.40 (includes tax).  That is $2.70 a DVD.

Yep, that is a great deal. 
They are usually $14.99 a piece.

The Toy R Us sales paper says – you can buy one and get one free but the undisclosed sale is you get $10.00 off 2 DVD’s. 

I actually bought 6 different DVD’s – guess what my newborn nephews are getting for Christmas? 

Blessings to you!!!!  You are loved!!!

Who could ask for more?

He brings me coffee every morning to my bedside to wake me up.
He lets me sleep late. 
He makes the kids’ breakfast. 
He tries to make sure the kitchen is tidied up before I come in the room so I don’t stress about extra housework. 
He cleans the toilets and bathtubs because the chemicals hurts my lungs. 
He then goes to work and haggles with unfriendly clients on a regular basis.
He’s given me five beautiful eternal children that keep me going. 
He then comes home to lunch and helps a crying daughter get through labeling Mississippi River on a map of tears. 
He strengthens the bond of brotherhood with his sons talking with them about lizards and guts. 
He then makes sure that my needs are taken care of by going to the grocery store and taking the little one so I can I have a moment or two of silence. 
He works on the house in our constant state of remodeling.  He does so with laughter and fun. 
He exceeds in taking care of the finances but always knows and shares how the Lord is taking care of us. 
He fulfills my desires to the utmost as a husband should. 
He laughs at my corny jokes and blesses my heart by calling my singing beautiful.
He walks uprightly with the Lord.

In the last 12 years, he has been my very best friend and my sweetheart.  I love you!  Happy Anniversary! 

Love,
Your Chicky-baby

Colors are good for the soul…

I finally picked out our colors for our office and playroom….

Do you see the upper wall? That is called Cider Toddy. This will be in our new office.

The bottom is Fragrant Cloves
which is already in our kitchen.

Brass Mesh is going in our playroom.

All of these colors came from the Olympic Paints website.
It is really a fun place to go. This works for me!

Blessings to you! You are loved!!!

Book Review: Seaside Letters

Seaside Letters ( A Nantucket Love Story)
by Denise Hunter

ISBN-13: 9781595542601

Sabrina, a waitress with a past, falls in love with a man who has been sending her emails. Then she realizes the writer is someone she knows. He can NEVER find out who she is because of a major secret. Now he has approached her to hire her to find the “secret lady.” Both of them have no idea what “secrets” are yet to be revealed.

This book would be good for a trip with a lot of interruptions. I didn’t have to finish the book to know what was going to happen at the end. Even though it was a story that could easily be followed, I felt that it left me wanting something else with more substance. Maybe a sequel is in order to finish some substantial issues.

The setting of the book also lacked many details. I was rather saddened not to feel the presence of the salt water from Nantucket or the smell of pie at the diner. The cover was the only object that had details that made me want to go there.

The story itself did not really inspire me. Although, I understood redemption and the power of honesty, it made me feel blah.

Sometimes a person might want a book that can be put down without rushing back into the room to read it and this might be just the book. Being a reviewer for Thomas Nelson’s Book Review Blogger program, at http://brb.thomasnelson.com/ these have been my thoughts.

Blessings to you! You are loved!!!

going wild….

Sometimes a girl needs a nap. Sometimes a girl needs her beauty rest. Sometimes a girl needs everything to be quiet. Sometimes she is enjoying those moments…but then she hears them…about 5o of them!

They are outside her window – so she grabs her camera and runs out the front door.

This is what the girl sees…
Can you see them?

You scared them…hold on, let me get another shot…oh wait…they are over my head….
Let me run to the back yard….
Can you see them now?
Let me zoom in…
One more shot….
Aren’t they gorgeous? They are not parrots but green parakeets. Too cool, huh?

Okay, I’m going to get some beauty rest now!

Blessings to you! You are loved!!!

Giveaway...

Contest is now closed: Winner was number 101.







©www.ilovemy5kids.blogspot.com

Kid's Fort

(This is an older post...I know it is winter now.  It would be a great Spring project - right around the corner!)

Okay, back in Spring we started on this Fort/Playhouse. Then it got HOT!!! The hottest summer in history. Every day, we were over the 100 degree mark. (Have I ever mentioned I don’t like the heat?)

Anyway, the project came to a halt.

This past weekend we picked it up again because it was cool, like the low 90’s. Yeah!!!

Excuse my non-landscaping – but everything I had planted died this year do to NO rain for 3 months. However, our sprinkler system is up and running so next year…I can’t wait!!!



I hung up 2 plants that hopefully my daughters will remember to water. They wanted some of their own…I like them learning how to take care of things.

Remember the rock? Well, we put some in here for a rock pit. My son loves it. My hubby added 2 little benches for him to sit on as he plays.

He also added another bench here. Perfect for doing math homework. My boys have done their work out here all week.

Handles and the wheel were also added.

Not bad with just some extra fence we had laying around.  Talk about re-invented!!!

We also added some pavers that lead to the fort. I love them! Makes my outside seem more organized in some fashion!

Blessings to you!!! You are loved!!!

Rachael Ray in my kitchen…

I have had only one little skillet for 12 years.  (I stole it from my mom’s kitchen…with her permission, of course.)

So, I was a little excited when I was contacted from http://www.diningroomsdirect.com to do a review from their website.

Look what they sent me…

The cookware not the cutie holding it.

I had to get a shot with my hubby and Rachael. 

(I can tell – they are going to be great friends.)

She even sat at my table. Notice the cobalt blue (my fave color) and my orange walls!  Love the colors!!!!

I received this a while back but have had a hard time deciding what to cook in it.

Finally, I had a recipe that called for sautéing onions.  
OMG – I LOVE that smell!  If they would only invent, smell-computer.  YUM!

Well, I was surprised at how light the pans were.  The pan that I used was a cinch to clean.  (Did I mention I LOVE that?)  My other skillet is a pain in the neck!

Well, thank you for letting me tell you about Rachael Ray being in my kitchen.

Blessings to you!!!  You are loved!!!

Places…

Fortunately, I have been able to visit a lot of places.  However, there are sooooo many places that I have not been to yet and  I would love to go with my hubby.  (Sorry no kids invited.  Well, maybe sometimes.)  We love to travel and visit new places, learn about other cultures and find new places to eat.

7 places to go or re-visit…this is my short-list.

1.  Austria 

I went many years ago and fell in love, with the beautiful breath-taking mountains. 
I would love to go back and share a coffee with my honey at the many coffee shops and just breathe the sweet air.

2.  Switzerland

Again, I went here many many moons ago.  I fell in love with the mountains, the sweet smell the of air and the FOOD.  I can’t think of one thing that I didn’t appreciate about this country.  I would share fondue with my hubby on this trip.

3.  Seattle, Washington

Okay – I know this sounds pretty weird especially if you live in Seattle but I want to visit a place where it rains – A LOT!  Not to mention a place known for their coffee.  My honey and I have never been here but would love to go.  It is interesting to me, anyone who wants to grow up and be called a monger.

4.  Hershey, Pennsylvania

This is a place I would want to take the kids.

Does this place even need words?

5.  New York

Niagara Falls

Times Square Church

I want to try their FROZEN hot chocolate.

6.  Easton, Pennsylvania
The CRAYOLA Factory

 
I would love to see in person how crayons are made. 
Mister Rogers did a special when I was little and it always made me want to visit.  My kids would love this trip.

7.  Puerto Rico
I want to visit one of the three bioluminescent bays.  Basically, you glow in the dark as you swim. 
Although, I hear the government won’t allow it anymore, maybe they will allow a change in future years. 
(Yes, I would take my kids to this one too.)

I have such a long list of places I want to go and visit, so I will probably do this again.  I’m a visual person and like to see things in person and experience the sights with my own eyes.    I will probably be adding to this list very soon.  

Where would you want to go with your honey?

Blessings to each of you!  You are loved!!!

Giveaway – Totally Toddler Style

Giveaway is now closed!

Totally Toddler has graciously offered to give one of my readers, a Totally Toddler Basket, full of their entire product line. (Value - $65.00)

The Nursery Stain Remover is one of my favorite products, I received it as a baby gift – 10 years ago and still use it. So, yes this could be one of Lana's Fave Things!

How to win:

Mandatory Entry:
Go visit Totally Toddler’s Website then come back here and tell me what you would like to see on store shelves. (Without this entry all other entries will be disqualified.)

Possible Entry 2:
Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway. You must post a separate comment saying you are doing this.

Possible Entry 3:
Follow my blog either by email or the Follow button at the end of this page. You must post a separate comment saying you are doing this.

Possible Entry 4:
Do my laundry. Just kidding!!!
Tell me something that you have learned on my blog.

Possible Entry 5:
I have been looking for a particular blog for a long time now. This blog had a tutorial on it how to make a monogram – framed for a teacher. There was also a picture below it that stated “Boys are Stupid.” I will let the first person who finds this particular blog have an extra entry. (This is NOT in my blog - this is somewhere elsewhere in the Blogworld.)

Possible Entry 6:
Tell me in 5 words what your purpose is in blogging.

Possible Entry 7:
For non-bloggers – why are you not blogging?

That is it! I wish you all could win!

Come back here on Sunday, September 27, 2009 to find out who is the winner! If you do not put an email – where I can find it – I will give the prize to another person. The winner will have 48 hours to get back here and claim the prize.

Just so you know: I’m not getting any monetary love offering for hosting this. I just really like the product and thought it should be shared with you.

Eye and Hair Color don't mix!

Not that this has ever happened to "moi" - but I just wanted to give you some info...just in case you might need this info and never want to google it or call your friend because they will call you "Amazing"- but not in a good way.

Let's say, your hair is turning gray - what is a girl to do? Color it of course! Let's say you have 5 children and really don't have the time to go and have someone color it, plus $7.57 is a lot cheaper than $70.00 for hair color, style and cut. (Yes, I have paid that before.)

Then let's say, you are trying to hurry because nap time is coming to an end and you still need a shower. The "non-drip" hair color has suddenly dripped in your eye. After, the initial reaction of a stinging that causes you to drop everything, forget who and where you are in this present world. You run to turn on the cool water and flush water into your eye. After about 10 minutes - you scramble to find the directions for the "non-drip" hair color.

You find the stupid instructions and read,
"Don't put color in eye or it could cause blindness." WHAT???!!!???
Okay - Calm is good for Queens.
I'm the Queen of my house. I will NOT be blind!

I look at my cell phone which is right beside me because I didn't want it to ring during nap time and called my Optometrist. {I have her cell phone programmed in my phone}
(I've used it before - a stupid Kohl's incident - another blog story, for another time.)

She answered immediately.

"Hello" sweetly says the Doctor.
"Hi...Am I going to be blind....????" cries the patient
"Uh, well, I don't know." says the Doctor
"The "non-drip" hair color - DRIIPPPPPED...." whines the patient
"Oh....well, run water in your eye for about 45 minutes.
Then put sterile drops in it after the burning sensation leaves.
-You could have problems but doubtful.
-Might cause problems for a couple of days to a couple of months.
Have we seen you here before?" Asks the Doctor
Clearing the throat, "Dr. this is Lana." (Can you see the red face in the phone?)
"Oh, Lana - I thought this was you."

I love my eye doctor!


Not that this was really me - but I had to use my name to make the story more life-like.

Moral of the story: Have your eye doctor's phone number programmed in your phone.

Blessings to you! You are loved!

©www.ilovemy5kids.blogspot.com