tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-81829513463825565252024-03-21T13:40:45.101-07:005 Oates in a RowLiving a Crazy, Blessed life!Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-82905957105986203742013-11-03T10:35:00.001-08:002013-11-03T10:42:25.105-08:00Lunch date<p dir="ltr">It's not very often that we go out somewhere for lunch, so today was a treat! Nana & Papa took the boys to the zoo today and James was home doing paperwork, so it was just the girls. We decided to go to Las Fuentes for a lunch date, just the girls with mom & dad. We enjoyed a beautiful fall day out on the patio, yummy food and some silly conversation :) After lunch we went to the thrift store to see if we could find anything for our costumes for our annual costume party. We had such a great time, but it felt weird to only have 2 girls :) I cherish days like this!</p>
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<p dir="ltr">We started the week off on Sunday with a little party for Wesley's 5th birthday at the beach just south of the Oceanside Pier. We just invited a few friend and enjoyed the day in the sun, playing in both the sand and the water. </p>
<p dir="ltr">We spent the week enjoying the beach, sleeping in, swimming in the pool, playing board games, playing tennis & basketball, reading together and playing legos. We spent about 25 hours at the beach over the week and of those, I'd say the kids spent 20 of them in the ocean, jumping the waves or boogey boarding. They were born for the beach :) Jamesy and I enjoyed our morning coffee together on balcony where we could see the resort, the harbor and the ocean; it was beautiful!</p><p dir="ltr">My friend Jess and her kids spent Sunday night at the resort with us and we ate breakfast together and then spent the day playing and walked down to the end of the pier for milkshakes at Ruby's. My sisters and their kids joined us for a day at the beach and swimming and the kids all had a blast! </p>
<p dir="ltr">One night we walked on the beach all the way to downtown and went to the sunset market night, where we enjoyed gelato and looking at all the fun booths. </p>
<p dir="ltr">The kids and I spent a morning on a little field trip at the mission that was just a few minutes away. The history is so interesting and the mission was beautiful! <br>
One of the nights, we walked to the harbor and enjoyed a yummy dinner at Dominic's as we watched the sun set over all the boats in the harbor.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The last day we ended up not going to the beach at all, as I was kinda over the sand, but we swam at the resort pool instead and ended up meeting a really nice family whom the kids played with & I talked with for hours. :)</p>
<p dir="ltr">We had a great week of fun in the sun!!</p>
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text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-kbTMAMkp99kXMrS-I_XX_2QxaG9dBnpATIkwBy8kNUbbOVuWiFSNc8I9w0xkvlXVj7bdS7cfsMFk7T_iconfdqkhWuhA-op5sRqmbMCIj-CW4GCS_2JdP5oj1TcChYteBZ0o8rxvJ_It/s1600/PhotoGrid_1379307437106.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-kbTMAMkp99kXMrS-I_XX_2QxaG9dBnpATIkwBy8kNUbbOVuWiFSNc8I9w0xkvlXVj7bdS7cfsMFk7T_iconfdqkhWuhA-op5sRqmbMCIj-CW4GCS_2JdP5oj1TcChYteBZ0o8rxvJ_It/s640/PhotoGrid_1379307437106.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjokWOA7fSJJzCuINQx8TwuMf3p1jh8eLhUMNburmG9EgBek_R0uedxrhKD1rECHU3Qu_3ux_8gFbm0Nomo9KBfSyH0o8SIfbAk5syYW4bXE2H4ve8tQX6Yme0hnCPIurhZKqzFUBT4n7rN/s1600/PhotoGrid_1379307629780.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjokWOA7fSJJzCuINQx8TwuMf3p1jh8eLhUMNburmG9EgBek_R0uedxrhKD1rECHU3Qu_3ux_8gFbm0Nomo9KBfSyH0o8SIfbAk5syYW4bXE2H4ve8tQX6Yme0hnCPIurhZKqzFUBT4n7rN/s640/PhotoGrid_1379307629780.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-86181720402967612212013-09-10T11:02:00.001-07:002013-09-20T07:51:59.214-07:00Birthday Boy! <p dir=ltr>Every year, with each birthday that passes, I am amazed at how quickly the year has gone by and this year was no exception! I can't believe our baby boy is 5!!</p>
<p dir=ltr>It is so fun to watch him grow and come into his own. He has the sweetest personality and is so loving, funny and silly. He loves legos, riding bikes, jumping on the trampoline and imaginative play with Grady. </p>
<p dir=ltr>We asked him what he wanted for his birthday and he said "my own tooth brush and tooth paste", so he got what he wanted :) </p>
<p dir=ltr>We also enjoyed a morning treat at Starbucks, a balloon and a lunch time pizza party at home with our family. </p>
<p dir=ltr>I asked him to stop growing, so he prayed asking God if could could stay 5 :) My sweet boy!<br></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-o6rdngCABe8/UjxhDLa-R1I/AAAAAAAADiU/s1600/PhotoGrid_1378303972083.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="http://lh3.ggpht.com/-o6rdngCABe8/UjxhDLa-R1I/AAAAAAAADiU/s640/PhotoGrid_1378303972083.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-54277308669400813002013-08-26T23:16:00.001-07:002013-10-09T22:48:14.382-07:00A dairy fun day<p dir=ltr>We have some friends who own a dairy and they invited us over for lunch after church. The kids were so excited, we were too, but not for the same reasons! :) We enjoyed a great lunch, the kids played inside and explored the dairy, we got to witness the circle of life and see north and death first hand, we watched the cows get milked and all loaded up into 1 truck to go shooting. All the kids lined up and got to shoot at the targets, we have a few who have a great shot! :)</p>
<p dir=ltr>When you live on a dairy, hills of hay, milking cows, tractors, etc... it's just normal everyday life. However, when you live in a tract house in town, it's all quite new and exciting! We had a great day, great food, great friends, great fun!!</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi31OaVCXdOZ5XljryyTWGlM7sRPEVzE0NGl0e_l0niES1XVJ260GVp79lBha0-ohSgBF37LJMhV58Wyyn-BvjrUmARbWcC8Zpj2aOo4lCmno2SKcDEXpxOmJowG3F7cxIAtTSUt7glZvRd/s1600/PhotoGrid_1376330273046.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi31OaVCXdOZ5XljryyTWGlM7sRPEVzE0NGl0e_l0niES1XVJ260GVp79lBha0-ohSgBF37LJMhV58Wyyn-BvjrUmARbWcC8Zpj2aOo4lCmno2SKcDEXpxOmJowG3F7cxIAtTSUt7glZvRd/s640/PhotoGrid_1376330273046.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-33273580847650193232013-08-24T19:20:00.003-07:002013-09-10T11:00:36.559-07:00Regional Park fun<p dir=ltr>Every summer our homeschool group goes to the regional park for a day of fun! Our kids look forward to playing in the cool water and the slides are always a hit! I didn't take my camera, but did snap a few on my phone. I love that we can enjoy "the beach" without the drive.</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-CYcgEDaSyoHVB5eYEiAu_OCLuJ52XZnGefSsaTCwEHHLI8g_f_AvUE7vVPex3YEPzDZeicFuCKFSXFQ7Fy2Iggmz6GX87BOMt622ZWsvR4bURO0htc9Sp1iMvNfwxMKh4LW2OvpIC9aq/s1600/PhotoGrid_1376445230154.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-CYcgEDaSyoHVB5eYEiAu_OCLuJ52XZnGefSsaTCwEHHLI8g_f_AvUE7vVPex3YEPzDZeicFuCKFSXFQ7Fy2Iggmz6GX87BOMt622ZWsvR4bURO0htc9Sp1iMvNfwxMKh4LW2OvpIC9aq/s640/PhotoGrid_1376445230154.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-52745064299901310662013-08-24T19:20:00.001-07:002013-08-30T08:00:17.249-07:00$2 Tuesday fun<p dir="ltr">Summer is nearly over, but we're still working on checking off items on our bucket list. The 66ers have a $2 special on Tuesday nights, so we took advantage of it. The little boys had never been to a professional baseball (I know the 66ers aren't the Padres, Angels or Dodgers, but they're closer and way cheaper) game before, so it was fun for them! The game was a little boring, but we lasted thru the 5th inning and everyone had fun!</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4_xoMYlv1_1Nr0hc_jSP2_8O7AnGM_RctkThi2PO9CGZIHcMdI9gVGwIJfhp3zapIPHWnKZaFyZb_mNTe4wCkY2btxuKs3VpRhwNRcseBrOxhP6eHK9fRBbn9wRQZq869BB6W8LFMVpz-/s1600/PhotoGrid_1377053679236.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4_xoMYlv1_1Nr0hc_jSP2_8O7AnGM_RctkThi2PO9CGZIHcMdI9gVGwIJfhp3zapIPHWnKZaFyZb_mNTe4wCkY2btxuKs3VpRhwNRcseBrOxhP6eHK9fRBbn9wRQZq869BB6W8LFMVpz-/s640/PhotoGrid_1377053679236.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-20131255905072954352013-08-24T19:10:00.001-07:002013-08-24T19:10:38.067-07:00Summer favorite<p dir="ltr">Everyone in our family loves music!! Growing up, my parents took me to live concerts all the time, the symphony, opera, gospel, organ concerts, college choirs, folk music, you name it, we went, listened and enjoyed. My parents still love concerts and go weekly to hear something. I think their love off music inspired my love of music. James' family also loves music and their history in band runs deep. So, it only makes sense that all off our kids love music too! We all absolutely love the Redlands Bowl! Since there are 2 weekly performances, we try to make it to at least one of them. We pack dinner, games, blankets and chairs and head down to Redlands for a good 3-4 hours of fun!! Our summer is made complete with the music we hear and the fun we have!</p><p dir="ltr">The summer season finished with the symphony and a piano soloist followed by the 1812 overture and fireworks! It was such a fun part of our summer and I'm sad it's over! Until next year!</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-mu-oqzcGN-jbNHSxY_GyoRyG68ZMBAZY0qodiSvzMMQrGHwbX38micrAZM9ybs7GjQn9riQ5FekhLmVAj56YKv59TVuH1j1DfcQxildmgU5Zm8t77emrMqAlU7NklUNPQQmkWg1F6_p_/s1600/PhotoGrid_1375843681763.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-mu-oqzcGN-jbNHSxY_GyoRyG68ZMBAZY0qodiSvzMMQrGHwbX38micrAZM9ybs7GjQn9riQ5FekhLmVAj56YKv59TVuH1j1DfcQxildmgU5Zm8t77emrMqAlU7NklUNPQQmkWg1F6_p_/s640/PhotoGrid_1375843681763.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Qqe3GN4fltjzEFBYD60TQvctvq4BTUz7jW3f_1acioBDlA3qJjOMZSy4L3xYstWUKGOiAKgPkJ6rTFxtCRVP_UFSNp9fnr6okHRLZh730gdAdBRrG1vdtnTx31xBzloHTPrm42WR5ISb/s1600/IMG_20130823_200714.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7Qqe3GN4fltjzEFBYD60TQvctvq4BTUz7jW3f_1acioBDlA3qJjOMZSy4L3xYstWUKGOiAKgPkJ6rTFxtCRVP_UFSNp9fnr6okHRLZh730gdAdBRrG1vdtnTx31xBzloHTPrm42WR5ISb/s640/IMG_20130823_200714.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnod0G10c3en-oHy7oi-nuVojhQW9r5LAljr5N2iukO-HaDJfCrrwefch8Y4ui9TrZPsXAsZf7XMPw8GFq5ADjV1L1mzMgKJh26c4VVIcw2welVfjwfnr8_zNirtgYcHWJnITb1lFrJUC/s1600/IMG_20130823_223317.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnnod0G10c3en-oHy7oi-nuVojhQW9r5LAljr5N2iukO-HaDJfCrrwefch8Y4ui9TrZPsXAsZf7XMPw8GFq5ADjV1L1mzMgKJh26c4VVIcw2welVfjwfnr8_zNirtgYcHWJnITb1lFrJUC/s640/IMG_20130823_223317.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-78839245617717763542013-08-24T17:53:00.001-07:002013-08-24T19:15:09.559-07:00Vacation<p dir=ltr>Summer it's filled with favorites! We love camping at Cachuma Lake, north of Santa Barbara and we love Spirit West Coast, so this vacation was great because we got to do both! We spent 3 days at Cachuma and 5 days in Monterey at SWC. </p>
<p dir=ltr>Given the busyness of our every day life, I love a vacation where we can relax and do fun things! We rode bikes, relaxed in the hammock, visited Solvang, rode Surry bikes, had a picnic, hiked around the lake, visited our favorite thrift store, played games, and roasted s'mores!! I was sad to leave Cachuma, but I'm looking forward to going back there next summer!! From Cachuma, to Monterey the drive is filled with wineries and vineyards cover the hills, it's so pretty. We stopped by the Madonna Inn, which was a first for the kids, on the way and had a yummy lunch.</p>
<p dir=ltr>We have been going to SWC since I was pregnant with Grace and for the last 6 years we've volunteered. The kids live for SWC and we haven't missed one in 12 years! This year, James headed up the transportation department, so it was essentially a working vacation for him, but he loved it. The kids and I had the best of both worlds, we enjoyed spending time with SWC friends, the concerts, Veggie Land and got to do fun things in Monterey! We went to the wharf, ate yummy chowder, visited a cool candy store, visited Cannary Row, played at fbcvccthe beach, Dennis the Mennis park, We had such a great time!!</p>
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text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1f_PHw2sOoVnz-gFaD7sNO-xwqepsheAo7NSgntJUjOTbCDzaIcQD_hoWGbCiNfpCN8UADGo2yHwEBTg2IKQcKNt11alkCBccaKjYAoUHpFz5xhzUdHbPzenF6hcxZUa_zru8Mycy_2QI/s1600/IMG_20130804_195333.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1f_PHw2sOoVnz-gFaD7sNO-xwqepsheAo7NSgntJUjOTbCDzaIcQD_hoWGbCiNfpCN8UADGo2yHwEBTg2IKQcKNt11alkCBccaKjYAoUHpFz5xhzUdHbPzenF6hcxZUa_zru8Mycy_2QI/s640/IMG_20130804_195333.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2e83o8OI7-CmOUpkX_94S-K8IQphUdZTrfURhSlCAQLt2I4i2s5T_WxjeO19gl95j5Pc1H1v0JMd6-bHpcPulOKs7uciMnjgH2x8G-qsINrGzo5CjAp2HWr2GCGMuKtAJDmciQgyjJh3/s1600/PhotoGrid_1377396875077.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx2e83o8OI7-CmOUpkX_94S-K8IQphUdZTrfURhSlCAQLt2I4i2s5T_WxjeO19gl95j5Pc1H1v0JMd6-bHpcPulOKs7uciMnjgH2x8G-qsINrGzo5CjAp2HWr2GCGMuKtAJDmciQgyjJh3/s640/PhotoGrid_1377396875077.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-41473397720415480462013-08-24T17:51:00.003-07:002013-08-24T17:51:43.143-07:00Zach, eye love you<p dir=ltr>Zach has had lazy eye lids since he was born. Over the years, we've seen the ophthalmologist on a regular basis, but now that he's older the Dr decided to do surgery to repair both lids.  We saw a Children's specialist and we really liked him. In the middle of my working the week of SERVE at church, Zach's surgery was scheduled. Other than the waiting time to get into surgery, the day went really smooth. His eyes will take weeks to heal and the bruising, months. We are hoping once the swelling goes down his eyes will look great!  </p>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWJln8YzHSgWmU0cwOcMX8Rtf-xE4mTTvQ-xZKVNFuAKqRtWa0yPPdQUmDecdoLu_Me_hXIyHEHrZCdbVITtozLBr3D_tJs6yFVxgjWJJevdF9zJO7ktCL6Tnmt3ScNwdhC8iCS0gkwm3/s1600/20130727_070445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWJln8YzHSgWmU0cwOcMX8Rtf-xE4mTTvQ-xZKVNFuAKqRtWa0yPPdQUmDecdoLu_Me_hXIyHEHrZCdbVITtozLBr3D_tJs6yFVxgjWJJevdF9zJO7ktCL6Tnmt3ScNwdhC8iCS0gkwm3/s640/20130727_070445.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-45416178987143328972013-08-24T16:30:00.001-07:002013-08-24T16:30:55.845-07:0016 years<p dir="ltr">16 years ago, we were just kids. I was 19, James had just turned 21, but we thought we were so mature and ready to face the world together. Thankfully, by the Grace of God, we have survived, not only do we love each other, but we still like each other too ;) <br>
We've been through a lot, in these years together, but I couldn't imagine spending my life with anyone else. <br>
This week and the coming weeks are a little chaotic, but we got to go out for the night and had dinner, drinks, dessert and went to the Redlands Bowl for some music under the stars. <br>
Happy Anniversary Oates, I love you to the moon and back!! I thank God for you!<br>
</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi72WfOkupBCnzjHDNHGHlrQy9-aZ-qhTGhyxjPO4-fzpX2QZtdBLebS8wDV53HXvIoq4WSJyPgq3YTHhXF-QLKh6itvtJ4MRDcfnnf2D2e7vRyXuUAvNUuKpbt8BTnQE9mfpwek-xlEyBZ/s1600/PhotoGrid_1374326102469.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi72WfOkupBCnzjHDNHGHlrQy9-aZ-qhTGhyxjPO4-fzpX2QZtdBLebS8wDV53HXvIoq4WSJyPgq3YTHhXF-QLKh6itvtJ4MRDcfnnf2D2e7vRyXuUAvNUuKpbt8BTnQE9mfpwek-xlEyBZ/s640/PhotoGrid_1374326102469.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-81310737146983769602013-07-23T07:24:00.001-07:002013-08-24T16:19:52.419-07:00Summer nights<p dir="ltr">I love summer nights, especially when it cools down just a bit where it's nice to enjoy the evening together as a family. One item on our summer bucket list was to ride our bikes to the Queen Bean, a local coffee shop. We opted to walk and had Dairy Queen instead, but had fun just the same. We got to see the sun go down in the distance and it was like a cherry to top our ice cream :)</p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eCQxtYaeZqmTJEju8OtCC_rNBZE5KsbCtP6gYku2n8OE299qhloSOaEon-H1krt8ICeUMprcN4zxw4HYjDGh16YEQm1t3trbvg0LdD70Pedy99SLF2LFVWYtL67IMMcapSIPHY7CbQy4/s1600/IMG_20130717_194858.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eCQxtYaeZqmTJEju8OtCC_rNBZE5KsbCtP6gYku2n8OE299qhloSOaEon-H1krt8ICeUMprcN4zxw4HYjDGh16YEQm1t3trbvg0LdD70Pedy99SLF2LFVWYtL67IMMcapSIPHY7CbQy4/s640/IMG_20130717_194858.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-U46cd9qzQDa48d-PzN2-uLwYvqLYd4-lCR_AZ_kVY-BgsM2CP_GLONQcHG4ZzZiB943lc1jSM8g0JklMift9c6IhC046FTxgTM9yAPQ0f9_I8kvX_AAfWJmfgJXft20k0vpTQ6xWNZbe/s1600/IMG_20130717_195147.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-U46cd9qzQDa48d-PzN2-uLwYvqLYd4-lCR_AZ_kVY-BgsM2CP_GLONQcHG4ZzZiB943lc1jSM8g0JklMift9c6IhC046FTxgTM9yAPQ0f9_I8kvX_AAfWJmfgJXft20k0vpTQ6xWNZbe/s640/IMG_20130717_195147.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQra2MWh97_JrydsV3Cmpjrvn17pjhXSjA6UAiPD2CqQ5mx8Q6kR55oIoqirXA_Jfl2k2ZZSpSG6YMNZO5vcHGY5E-Oht-Al2AkHcwQEkQOGvJnwmHRZJvOODbArfm2vhMpCNydQojipLT/s1600/IMG_20130717_203110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQra2MWh97_JrydsV3Cmpjrvn17pjhXSjA6UAiPD2CqQ5mx8Q6kR55oIoqirXA_Jfl2k2ZZSpSG6YMNZO5vcHGY5E-Oht-Al2AkHcwQEkQOGvJnwmHRZJvOODbArfm2vhMpCNydQojipLT/s640/IMG_20130717_203110.jpg"> </a> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvsKBOeOVZw0OIfvE0X3tIMQr1kjTKEoIuJZD4x-5inXyzB_aLdTj_U-fbBHJhxevZP6M2LXREmsJa86-1Oe4dz4vaMMscrDlw7fBA-8oy1WqnsWinPElbdNU7-_POjO6idijG7yypLJT/s1600/IMG_20130717_203026.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEvsKBOeOVZw0OIfvE0X3tIMQr1kjTKEoIuJZD4x-5inXyzB_aLdTj_U-fbBHJhxevZP6M2LXREmsJa86-1Oe4dz4vaMMscrDlw7fBA-8oy1WqnsWinPElbdNU7-_POjO6idijG7yypLJT/s640/IMG_20130717_203026.jpg"> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-88502550871587704922013-07-13T07:27:00.001-07:002013-07-22T05:39:34.169-07:00The building of "the table"<p dir=ltr>About 4 years ago, after dinner with our small group, James came up with the idea of a bottle top table. From that night on, pretty much everyone we know has been collecting bottle tops and the table idea went from a card table, to what it is today, a 12' x 4' dinner table. We have about 6000 bottle tops and after many drawings, the table is being built! James and I figured out the dimensions and exactly how to construct it and this week I went and got all the supplies. Also, just this week, I found a solid wood table and chair set on Buy/Sell/Trade for a great price and figured I could incorporate it into the base. I cut the table in half and lengthened it by adding 6ft sections of 2x4. After securing it all together, I added wood across the top to create a table base that is 12' long and 4' wide and has 6 sturdy legs. It was a lot of work, but it ended up looking pretty awesome, if I do say so myself :)<br>
We had already decided that since this table has been years in the making and our small group played such a significant part in the idea, design and drinking of the beer to produce the bottle tops, :) that each couple in our small group would get a 2'x2' section to design. <br>
Thursday night was the beginning of the art work. 4 of the 6 couples in our group were here to begin the top. The sections were marked off, the bottle tops were sorted by color and the fun began!! We still have lots of work to complete, 2 more couples need to complete their section, the Oates section needs to be done, as does the checker board and surrounding area (our kids are working on). Once all the artwork with the tops are done, I will grout the entire table, attach molding and glass to cover it.<br>
We are so excited to see this project come to fruition and looking forward to many meals shared around this, our table of love! More pictures to come as the project comes to a close!!</p>
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With full bellies, we went home to make some festive yummy food. We loaded up the van and headed down to my sisters to swim and BBQ with everyone. It was a fun time of eating, watching all the cousins play together, laughing and getting thrown in the pool. (I was a party pooper and didn't get thrown in) Then, we loaded back up to go to James' brothers house to eat and do fireworks in the street. Since, Scott and Christine bought their house we've done fireworks there every year. There was about 30 of us, lots of food, fireworks both big and and small and lots of squeals of delight from the kids! <br>
It was after midnight before we got home, but it was a great day spent with those we love, celebrating our great country!!</p>
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<div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz3WAHYxZAbpd-kzPD_Ti2Z_OS8_m68mQCoKKHsL-M3y5QAzxzi7d6SqsSxVcQVujhUPfKrVvPNpbXIeJ98WZOAPV3f-g1Al4dPogzjFhTRmJSLlBmA6Z-I-7RRgCztBTqpmnxM5hpj6tw/s1600/IMG_20130618_140843.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz3WAHYxZAbpd-kzPD_Ti2Z_OS8_m68mQCoKKHsL-M3y5QAzxzi7d6SqsSxVcQVujhUPfKrVvPNpbXIeJ98WZOAPV3f-g1Al4dPogzjFhTRmJSLlBmA6Z-I-7RRgCztBTqpmnxM5hpj6tw/s640/IMG_20130618_140843.jpg' /> </a> </div><div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4gCkYOQz60EKN6SSkyPt8iUQSeWYcQCR5pyvjhFLpCdX7tMPTZGnSLzQP9zd8-A-bzyHjII9LJXzktztFedFiPJm7KUnM-_VmZo2_f-R6svZYUu3JIC8ddN2hSSWxVMQO7CmA2DgvA__/s1600/IMG_20130618_105155.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic4gCkYOQz60EKN6SSkyPt8iUQSeWYcQCR5pyvjhFLpCdX7tMPTZGnSLzQP9zd8-A-bzyHjII9LJXzktztFedFiPJm7KUnM-_VmZo2_f-R6svZYUu3JIC8ddN2hSSWxVMQO7CmA2DgvA__/s640/IMG_20130618_105155.jpg' /> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-84519143298558403252013-06-15T07:15:00.001-07:002013-06-15T22:18:13.235-07:00Another fun summer day! <p dir=ltr>Gracie went swimming with a friend, so I decided to take the others somewhere fun. First, we thought the park, but I changed my mind and started driving up 38...</p>
<p dir=ltr>We've never been to Thurman flats and the kids thought it was fun! They used <u>their</u> imaginations and pretended they had bows & arrows, they were in boats on a river, we skipped rocks, sat in the water, jumped from rocks, splashed and had a good ole' time!</p>
<div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2F_983Mv9n_3WThL0hQci7z5-YmglNj-YPHrbbu79b_3EAaNPxw6LMpXQyaHGwk4YB1xOWqGlldarppsF4qZGVxVbUexoMVzrgUA0E6utw5377mWNYOrvdzazaAPRATkFSXRXUoE0MRj/s1600/PhotoGrid_1371305389428.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2F_983Mv9n_3WThL0hQci7z5-YmglNj-YPHrbbu79b_3EAaNPxw6LMpXQyaHGwk4YB1xOWqGlldarppsF4qZGVxVbUexoMVzrgUA0E6utw5377mWNYOrvdzazaAPRATkFSXRXUoE0MRj/s640/PhotoGrid_1371305389428.jpg' /> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-23730479245055583742013-06-11T15:57:00.001-07:002013-06-11T16:04:22.759-07:00Fun in Forest Falls<p dir=ltr>We love the outdoors and hiking is something we can enjoy as a family, however once the heat of summer is here we rarely get to hike because of the heat. Last night the girls each had a friend sleep over, so today we thought it would be great to hike with friends. We packed lunch and headed up to forest falls, where we could enjoy a little cooler weather. <br>
We hiked up to the falls, swam in the freezing water (the kids did, not me) and ate some lunch! Such a fun summer day!!</p>
<div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQXlD5qO5TZiQ-R_7ScU4BjaqpgpAMz7OdhhT6z7eZriRTFtL2_or85sgFp2a9wmikA4QtjUHXk23XZwaTBcZhzCATYzVHM3T1gZlJP6HlZPxytSyhlxVN2pm7tGQZTYaiS3pRJNwCLvZ/s1600/PhotoGrid_1370991651508.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQXlD5qO5TZiQ-R_7ScU4BjaqpgpAMz7OdhhT6z7eZriRTFtL2_or85sgFp2a9wmikA4QtjUHXk23XZwaTBcZhzCATYzVHM3T1gZlJP6HlZPxytSyhlxVN2pm7tGQZTYaiS3pRJNwCLvZ/s640/PhotoGrid_1370991651508.jpg' /> </a> </div><div class='separator' style='clear: both; text-align: center;'> <a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ACg6Y9qx91zgsenPap6p0N3MDaP8iFh5-npotTGzbJS7BuEVDPvH0Tc88N66QG17mClP3lX8DRQo3kPBdOK2n_UsI2dlDfogBsCUeqaj9suOt_dusiEBDnZK-e5mE1j8H9othM2Ozw1_/s1600/PhotoGrid_1370991510268.jpg' imageanchor='1' style='margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;'> <img border='0' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0ACg6Y9qx91zgsenPap6p0N3MDaP8iFh5-npotTGzbJS7BuEVDPvH0Tc88N66QG17mClP3lX8DRQo3kPBdOK2n_UsI2dlDfogBsCUeqaj9suOt_dusiEBDnZK-e5mE1j8H9othM2Ozw1_/s640/PhotoGrid_1370991510268.jpg' /> </a> </div>Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-37713942905891691772013-06-09T22:20:00.002-07:002013-06-29T22:40:57.223-07:00Meals and Menus<div dir="ltr">
Be prepared to the longest blog post ever! But it's worth it, I promise!</div>
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Awhile back I posted on Facebook that I meal planned for all of May and June, as I was super excited to have that done. Well, I guess lots of people don't like this chore and/or struggle in this area and have asked me how I do it, will I do it for them, can they just have my menus, etc...</div>
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First of all, I love being organized!! Second, I enjoy cooking healthy foods for my family and Third, I like to challenge myself to spend as little as possible when grocery shopping for our menus.<br />
To me, meal planning is a pretty simple task that makes the rest of life go much more smoothly. Feeding 7 people for each and every meal at home is time consuming, costly and not very much fun when at 5 pm you have no idea of what to fix and have to be somewhere at 7. :/ I started meal planning in the beginning just to give me an idea of what was for dinner, but as our family grew and my time didn't multiple like our family did, meal planning became a necessity. During much of our school year we have nightly obligations every night except Friday and Saturday, so without planning it becomes a disaster quickly! when I haven't meal planned, I don't feel like cooking, we grab something out more often and lots of other areas tend to follow suit being unorganized.</div>
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For my menus, I have done them a number of ways over the years, on a calender, in a meal planning book, using an app on my phone, but lately I've been using a spiral notebook and a do a week a page. This seems to work well for a number or reasons...although, I like keeping things electronically, I still like using a pen and paper. I can look back over the weeks (when my mind seems a little cloudy) and make sure we are getting a variety and I don't repeat the same meal too often. The downside is if that spiral notebook magically disappears, then I feel kind of lost, which isn't fun. When I start meal planning, I seem to just get on a roll and then before you know it I have 10 or 12 weeks planned, which feels glorious! For ideas, I ask my kids and hubby what they would like to eat, look through my cooking magazines and browse pinterest. I start our weekly menu on Sunday and most always include one dessert a week. I don't generally plan a full meal for Thursday night, as James and I are gone every Thursday night to our small group. On those nights the kids eat something easy, like quesadillas, breakfast or if I have an extra planned meal that didn't get cooked I'll do that or my parents will bring something they had. Other than Thursday nights I plan every breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack for the entire week. By planning out even our snacks, I feel like I spend way less money and it makes food prep during the day much quicker, especially during school, that way we can get right back to school, instead of spending an hour on snack time...</div>
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I have a chalkboard up in my kitchen and each morning I write down our menu. This not only saves me time, but also from hearing "Mom, what's for snack/lunch/dinner?" a million times a day, and then there is a lot less rummaging through the pantry and fridge. I always have fresh fruit, veggies, dried/canned fruit and nuts in plenty, just in case we have extra mouths to feed, which is a couple of times a week. As for the menu, once it's on the board, it is take it or leave it. I remind my kiddos that I work hard to prepare the menu and meals and they need to be grateful we have food to eat whenever we are hungry. (and I might tell them there are kids starving in Africa once in awhile too) :)</div>
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After the menu is made I make a grocery list according to each menu. I have a 5x7 weekly calendar that I use to write down my list for each weeks menu. I write down absolutely everything I'll need for each meal to start and then before I go shopping, I'll cross off what I already have, like cheese, milk, quinoa, etc...Some weeks, if I'm running short on time, I'll just bring my menu notebook to the store and look at the meals, but mostly I make the list as I meal plan, a. because I'm already sitting there and b. I won't always know the ingredients for new recipes.</div>
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A note about my menus. I make almost everything from scratch. We eat mostly organic, whole foods, little sugar, no dyes and nearly no gluten. We love dairy, fruits and vegetables, fish and nuts. I don't eat red meat, so I only cook it on occasion. I buy as little processed foods as possible and really enjoy spending time in the kitchen. There are a few things I don't take the time to make-like ravioli, tortillas, bagels, flax crackers, sweet potato chips and occasionally I'll splurge out of convenience on fruit leather, granola and/or granola bars, and sometimes hummus, salsa or apple sauce.</div>
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So, now for the menus...I'm going to start with 5 weeks of dinner and see how that goes...Every dinner is gluten free, unless otherwise noted.</div>
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week 1<br />
S- pizza, salad, banana cream dessert</div>
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M- Apricot chicken, quinoa, carrots, salad</div>
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T- Mexican casserole, salad</div>
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W- Turkey stroganoff, roasted brussel sprouts, salad</div>
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Th- Quesadillas</div>
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F- maple glazed Salmon, stir fried veggies, brown rice</div>
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S- Italian flying saucers, broccoli, salad</div>
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week 2</div>
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S- Chili, cornbread, chocolate chip bars</div>
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M- Coconut mahi-mahi, jasmine rice, green beans, salad</div>
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T- Ravioli, cauliflower, salad</div>
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W- orange chicken (<a href="http://everydayglutenfreeme.com/2012/08/14/gluten-free-orange-chicken-panda-express-copy-cat-recipe/">pinterest</a>), chow mein, stir fry veggies</div>
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Th- Sour cream enchiladas, crock pot beans, rice, salad (we hosted small group)</div>
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F- Chicken and rice soup, fresh bread</div>
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S- Asparagus pasta, salad</div>
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week3</div>
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S- Sloppy Joes, corn on the cob, salad, berry cobbler</div>
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M- Spaghetti, salad, garlic toast</div>
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T- Scrambled Eggs, bacon, cinnamon rolls (<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/152770612331658737/">pinterest</a>), sliced melon</div>
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W- BBQ chicken, ranch quinoa, green beans, salad</div>
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Th- Quinoa minestrone soup, (<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/14355292534058739/">pinterest</a>) fresh bread</div>
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F- Tuna noodle casserole, broccoli, salad</div>
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S- Mahi Mahi tacos, beans</div>
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week4</div>
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S- Crock pot salsa burritos, salad, watermelon</div>
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M-Citrus salmon, pumpkin quinoa, broccoli, salad</div>
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T- Garlic brown sugar chicken (<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/14355292534365872/">pinterest</a>) mashed red potatoes, asparagus, salad</div>
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W- Baked Ziti & summer veggies (<a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/14355292534848225/">pinterest</a>) salad, </div>
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Th- pizza</div>
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F- Nachos</div>
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S- Cauliflower casserole (<a href="http://www.quiltingboard.com/recipes-f8/crock-pot-cauliflower-casserole-t98937.html">pinterest</a>), salad, sliced melon</div>
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week5</div>
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S- Crock pot roast w/ veggies & potatoes, salad, brownies</div>
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M- white chicken chili, biscuits, salad, strawberries</div>
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T- Crock Pot mac n' cheese, roasted brussel sprouts, salad</div>
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W- Baked Potato Bar, salad</div>
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Th- cereal (great meal, I know, but the kids love it!)</div>
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F- Grilled Tilapia with mango salsa, corn & bean quinoa, chips & guacamole</div>
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S- Crock Pot Ranch Pork chops over pasta, squash, salad</div>
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So there you have it! 5 weeks of menus and a few recipes to boot! If you would like a specific recipe for any of the meals, just ask, I'm happy to oblige :)</div>
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Sharing this makes me happy, so if this makes your life easier or gets you out of a meal planning funk, then yay! Feel free to share!</div>
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More later...</div>
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Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-91929727810908514072013-06-04T09:17:00.001-07:002013-06-05T15:23:33.353-07:00Skating fun<p dir=ltr>My last blog post was pretty intense, so I wanted to share something fun! :)</p>
<p dir=ltr>Our homeschool group is BIG and we get to do so many fun things as a group. Every year we have a skate party celebrating the end of the school year and my kids LOVE it! <br>
I didn't take very many pictures, but we had a blast! The big kids are skating maniacs :) and the little boys did so great! Grady actually figured out how to skate on his own after using the "skating walker"...not sure what it's actually called, but it's pictured with Wesley. Wesley was going around the rink with his walker without any help and was so proud of himself.<br>
With the exception of sore tail bones from a few falls, no-one had any injuries!<br>
All the kids asked if we could go skating again over summer, so we added it to our summer bucket list! :-) Bring on the summer fun!! (Excuse the bad pictures from my phone)</p>
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<p dir=ltr>For along time, it was fear and disease that controlled my life. Having cancer changed me as a person. Now, I live daily with my new normal and while everything may appear perfectly normal on the outside, the pain is real and affects my every move. Although, I have been cancer free for a few years now, I am consumed with the way cancer changed my life. I no longer am consumed by the fear that I will get sick again, however I am still consumed by its result. There are things that changed for the better, my perspective for instance, my love for life and appreciation of the little things. However, the damage to my body, mind and soul sometimes can be overwhelming. Since having a radical neck dissection and complete parathyroidectomy in the last days of 2007, I have struggled with anxiety and severe nerve and muscle damage that has resulted in debilitating migraines. </p>
<p dir=ltr>Some days, weeks even I feel hopeful that I have them under control, that is until another one hits. I have tried pain clinics, medication, nerve therapy, massage, chiropractic care, diet change, you name it, nothing seems to work. I have read numerous books on healing, migraines, cancer, etc...I pray for relief and still little seems to help.</p>
<p dir=ltr>Some days are worse than others, aside from the headache, the emotions that come with feeling a lack of control and the desire for change can get the best of me. A pity party results...</p>
<p dir=ltr>While I am certain that I serve a loving God that can do miracles, as was evident in my healing of cancer, somedays I lack faith. Funny, for a woman named Faith, huh? </p>
<p dir=ltr>Today had been one of those days...<br>
Last night, we were relaxing out back, playing games and enjoying a drink while listening to music. I was really enjoying the fact that there was time to relax and the weather was beautiful. As bedtime approached, so did my headache. By 1am I could hardly think straight, I did my routine of warding off the migraine and finally fell asleep about 4am. But by 9am I felt like vomiting from the pain. It's now after 6pm and I've done little other than lay on the couch, yell at my kids and hate life. </p>
<p dir=ltr>My life is truly blessed, I realize this. But sometimes, just sometimes I feel jipped. I HATE that a diagnosis of cancer changed the way I am able to live life. </p>
<p dir=ltr>Tomorrow is a new day and with it is His promise that joy comes in the morning. Tomorrow, I will choose joy. I won't let a stupid migraine control me. </p>
Faithyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18174850250950775548noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8182951346382556525.post-40894490729091976062013-05-24T11:06:00.001-07:002013-06-05T15:24:28.042-07:00When life gives you lemons...<p dir=ltr>This past week, two different friends brought me bags of lemons. The kids begged to make lemonade, so we did! <br>
After making a few pitchers of lemonade, lemonade slushies and tazo passion tea lemonade, I had a huge bowl of lemon peels and didn't want to just toss them. Good thing I have pinterest :) After finding a recipe that looked good, I made a huge batch of lemon sugar scrub and put it in jelly jars with cute fabric and made some labels. <br>
I love creating and this was so easy! I'd you want a jar of lemon sugar scrub, let me know, I'd love to share :)</p>
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