potato head pirate pumpkin :)

my 6 things...

my friend dawn gave me this little 'award'. cracks me up because i have always noticed these blog awards, but didn't know they came with a price :) it is a chain letter of sorts, so if i pass this award on to you and you don't have that kind of time...i completely understand!!!

List 6 things that make you happy:

my boys...all of them. saturday was my birthday and shane played at legend's bbq. (if you have never heard him sing go to http://www.ashleyhopper.com/ and he is the background music for my sister's photog site) my sweet family met us there for dinner and the boys were going to get on stage with daddy and sing me happy birthday. tate had even drawn a picture of the big event and it was complete with cousins bobby, haley on stage and ava sitting on the steps to the stage all singing happy birthday to mom! these boys always make me smile. they are my life. my husband bought me the most perfect card and wrote something in it that i have needed to hear for a long time. 'let's both start taking life as it comes, then more importantly, letting it go when we need to' i have recently been in a funk (which i am proud to say almost never happens to me) over some friend issues. sounds like i'm 12 years old, well, that is what it felt like. no matter what the outcome may have been, i now need to just let it go and stand firm in the knowledge that my God has provided me with multitudes of wonderful friends throughout my life, and more importantly an incredible family. my husband is my best friend and i appreciate him so much...

number 2. the bible. i came across an old bible study book about realizing you're already a virtuous woman in Christ. i had done it when we lived in CO. it's timing was perfect. 'she looks well to how things go in her household, and the bread of idleness she will not eat.' proverbs 31:27 bread of idleness for me = gossip, discontent, self-pity

i am through eating that bread...too many time wasting carbs!!! i have better ways to spend my life on Earth.

3. pumpkins. take your kids to carmichael's in bixby!! stealing grams from work early to go with us for camel and pony rides @ the pumpkin patch. perfect weather. what else could you ask for???
4. keeping secrets from my little sis who will be home for thanksgiving. we want to WOW her with all the new hotspots after a day of black friday christmas shopping. so fun to talk to her and give her little hints about our 'plans' she is a hip chick who is very missed!!

5. blue diamond natural brown sugar and cinnamon almonds. a recent diagnosis of two types of arthritis will jump start you into a new lifestyle. after visiting the arthritis center and seeing all of the pictures of the crippling effects it can bring, i have researched the most natural ways to feel better. the paleolithic diet approach is basically eating all things hunted or gathered. the lack of carbs and preservatives will lessen the flare ups and ease the joint stress. -11 pounds and several inches has made a dif already. i feel better. but these little almonds have helped me through a few rough spots.

6. reasor's online shopping. see previous post :) unbeatable happiness when pulling through that drive thru!!!!!! yea reasor's!

ok ladies, tag you're it...and the award goes to:

kim

ashley hopper photography

mama bear green

julie

kimberly

jeanne

new blankie...

lollie (a.k.a. grandma ed) made wyatt a new blanket and in the box that she sent i found something else so special. she had kept the flowers that she and my dad and the kids had worn during shane and i's wedding. it was this perfectly preserved set of memories that made me cry the second i saw them. that box had been through a lot, but managed to remind me of everything from that incredible day and from the last 8 1/2 years. the crazy thing is, with my dad's job that box of flowers had moved 6 times and been through 2 hurricanes! amazing! thank you lollie for sending such wonderful, priceless treasures. my boys will forever love their soft, special, chenielle, one of a kind 'lollie-pop' blankies!!

yesterday, we ventured out to the most glorious place on earth...no, not the grand canyon or pikes peak, but the pumpkin patch. to me, it is just another one of God's miracles. maybe it is because i have an october birthday or just because the weather this time of year is irresistible, but i will always believe that a pumpkin and i have some special connection. they are just so darn cute and the colors are awesome! i love just letting the boys loose with the maze and wheelbarrows and the hay. we had a ball and it's always a treat to have cousin b come with, oh yes, and you too granny!

impressed...

a mother's strength is a hard thing to match. i try not to ever complain (my husband might laugh at that statement...he lets me whine as needed) but the heartload of a mother can be difficult. i don't care if you are mother to one, mother to five, step-mom to two - just whatever the case may be you love your children beyond measure. you love them with every ounce of who you are. tonight i got to deliver my clipboards and i was reminded of a mother's strength. if you don't know her, you should visit http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/haleypalmer Jennifer is about to open her new shop in Owasso and it is going to ROCK!!! i was so impressed and could not help thinking how proud haley has to be right now...

proud momma...

monday morning @ 8:40am a host of family braved the early morning and came to our wonderful school week kickoff assembly to watch our little mandolin player. his class was in charge of the assembly and he got to play along with their rise and shine song. he was a natural...even picked out his own outfit :) had to sport the cowboy vest and big team ropin' belt buckle to play that instrument.

ok, later that evening the boys had scouts. this picture makes me laugh because i pray it is no indication of the future for lane. he looks like a frat boy. he LOVES these boys and so badly wants to be one of the gang! good thing that is mom's diet d.p. that he LOVES to steal as soon as i start to drink one :)

so, while the big boys were all gone...my sweet wyatt was snoozin' away for his evening nap and i got busy with my clipboard order. yes! this picture is a little busy, but they are so fun! a friend of mine is opening a teacher supply store in owasso http://www.owassoclassroomcorner.com/ on fall break weekend and i am well on my way to completing her clipboard order :) 2 dozen and some card packs!!! i was so excited to be asked and to be a part of such an exciting time in her life as well!!

praise the Lord for my family, friends, and opportunities! we are so blessed!!

absolute rush...

it is funny what us mommies of the world will get excited about. this goes way beyond just mommies!! i don't know too many people who wouldn't be excited about this. my neighbor was so anxious to tell me something the other day and so excited that i was excited. she even said that her heart was racing when she found out how wonderful this thing was. drum roll please..............

online grocery shopping

i am in a new world! it is going to change my life! i am writing right now because i have an extra minute due to the lack of grocery store chaos i would usually go through on a typical trip. i want to shout it from the rooftops!!! for a minuscule $5 fee, you too can experience heaven. i could not sleep last night. i had too much to do and not enough hours in the day. when i get like this, i must get up and just do what i need to do. after laundry sorting and housewide trash collecting, i decide to give the online experience a try. i found everything i needed and actually had time to look at some things i had been wanting to try. i planned out recipes, shopped bargains, and even chose thinly sliced ham from the deli for sandwiches. all in the comfort of my jammies with no monkeys hanging from the cart, shelves, displays or ramming the cart into my heels or other peoples' toes. i chose a 4:00pm pick up time, called them after collecting all children after school and literally drove up into the drive-thru...got out...opened my back hatch...and out they came through the sliding doors. "Mrs. Farley?" and that very moment is when i knew what my neighbor was talking about...my heart leaped! YES!! i AM mrs. farley...the luckiest, smartest, most resourceful woman alive. no dodging the fruit snack and cookie aisle. no crying to ride the horse that i never remember to keep a quarter for. no making the two big boys a list of their own to play 'i spy' all the way through the store which usually turns into a fight over who won. no more pushing the baby in one cart while trying to guide my oldest with a second cart too full for him to turn corners with while the middle one is wanting to know when we will ever make it to the cookie lady at the bake-a-wee...heaven! i am hooked!

watch if you love to laugh...

my boys love each other so much!! the two oldest have so much fun trying to make wyatt laugh and at the same time seem to try to irritate each other to the point of tears. i guess i remember doing the same thing with my siblings. memories in the making!!!

photography by www.ashleyhopper.com

pride...

you've seen him eat green beans, but have we ever even formally introduced him? well, here he is. i never knew my hearts real capacity until i met wyatt. tate and lane are two unbelievable little boys. lane is the bat boy for tate's ball team, but can practically out run, out catch, out throw some of the boys on the team. tate is constantly proud of him and doesn't hesitate to tell him so. lane stands as tall as he can stretch at the front of the line to shake hands with the opposing team after games because the coaches have told him he earned that spot and the big boys just step aside to let him lead the way. with all of the fun we have had and all of the birthdays they have shared in july and all of the firsts they have conquered together, i never dreamed of how astonished they would be of their little brother wyatt almost daily! every new noise, rolling over, now trying to sit up...they will shout it from the rooftops and cheer him along every step of the way. i feel like i am having my own little olympics sometimes...tears of joy and all.

green beans are chewy...

the gag reflex must not be quite as strong for our new little one. our oldest would gag when the spoon got right under his nose. still funny to watch! isn't he so cute???

doomsday

today will start another school year for me. i will likely blubber from the moment i get into the car to leave the sitters for at least 5 or 6 miles. i pledge to come prepared...make-up, my cell phone (so my husband can make fun/comfort me), and a diet dr.pepper. will wyatt remember me tonight? will the big boys behave? will my job bring with it the rewards and fulfillment it always does?
i realize that some people think that their job is the hardest, but i salute anyone who is a mom and works. my husband and i were just talking about this last night. he finally admitted that i DO have a job in the summers...and two during the school year. smart guy!

gossip @ 33...

gossip: (gos-uhp) idle talk or rumor, esp. about the personal or private affairs of others:

apparently this post was not taken well by some readers (didn't know i had any or that they were full of opinions) oh well! I live in a house full of boys, so crying over things is not always understood but my husband listens and manages to comfort me anyway! :)
"The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song. The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever."Psalm 28:7-9

my reality...

i actually submitted this to jeff foxworthy's website. we shall see if it posts. it might seem funny to some, and others you may not get it at first. yes, it IS a true story.

YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK IF YOUR SON AND HIS UNCLE ARE ON THE SAME T-BALL TEAM.