Moving with ease

I decided I would be crazy and jump on a bandwagon. I convinced myself that it was good to hop on board, after all, I saw my husband take a ride on this wagon and he was fine. I have been on the wagon for three days, and let me just say.............

WHAT WAS I THINKING???!!!!!

This wagon I jumped on, it would be the one and only P90X wagon. I have finished day three. However, I thought I would be a tough gal and add on 30min-1hr/day of cardio on top of it. Let me just say there is not one muscle that moves/twitches/relaxes without me feeling it!

My abs told me today they had had enough. While in the middle of Ab Ripper they go completely numb. Yes, numb. I could not feel my midsection. I guess the pain was to unbearable that my brain blocked all the nerves and said "NO MORE! YOU CRAZY PERSON!"

Although I feel as though someone has been beating me with a mallet while I sleep, I will not give up. After 90 days I will have Jillian Michael's arms and J. Lo's booty. I will be victorious.

Recommendations

1. Ever since I read my friend's post about folding and organizing sheets, my bed sheet changing has never been the same! I highly recommend that when a sheet set is folded, slide the set into one of the matching pillow cases and your linen closet will thank you and your mind will thank you when you don't have to tear the closet apart to find the missing matching pillowcase. To read her post for clearer instructions click HERE. This is a life improving tip, trust me.

2. Macadamia Nut Oil Treatment for your hair. Oh my word!!! I could write a book about this stuff. I LOVE it! My stylist used another product like this (Moroccan Oil) on my hair and the smell was way too much for me. Then my hubby's cousin, Sarah, from Hair Thursday actually did a video on these oil treatments and mentioned the Macadamia Oil and how it did not smell as strong. You can see the vid HERE if you like. So, I researched it a little, got some reviews, checked pricing, etc. After one application my hair was like silk. I was a little girl again who wanted to just suck her thumb and twirl her hair! I use heat on my hair almost everyday, plus the use of a flat iron, and I get my hair colored (by the way I had red highlights put in and this has not affected my color at all, and we all know how sensitive red can be!). All that can do some damage no matter how careful you are. This oil, is the bomb. I have seen dramatic improvements in my hair and love it. Now, it is a little on the pricey side. $36 for a 4oz bottle. Ouch, I know! However, I can justify the cost when it takes me like a year to use the bottle! A little goes a long way, trust me. I love the smell, so I added a little (ok a lot) extra to my hair and my hair was as limp as a wet dishcloth (however, not at all greasy). Use just the right amount (about dime size for my middle of my back length hair) and it is just right. If you have short hair, well this could be a lifetime supply for $36 (the price is the same no matter where you look). Worth it, right? I thought so. Go to Ulta now and get some. PS - if you have long hair u will love this - using this oil cuts your drying time in half. Well, maybe not in half, but it does help get it done faster!

3. Ever been to Alaska? No? Book your trip now and if possible could you spare some airmiles for me? Thanks.

4. That is all

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everybody.........

sit back and think about how merry we all should be.

I have a wonderful husband and children...

Friends who are traveling to pick up long-awaited children and add them to their family

Friends who are in process of adding children to their families

Family who are gathering together who are all healthy

A home that stands against the Oklahoma winds

Friends gathering together with new little ones in their families

A great church to worship our God

An extended family who always thinks of us no matter where we are in the world

Friends who I may not have seen in a while but think of enough of me to send me a card at Christmas

Today I don't have the Alaska snow, but I have overcast skies :)

My doggy gets to lay by the fire

This list could go on and on

We all have the greatest gift of all......Jesus Christ.

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”(which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Merry Christmas!

Carb-o-licious

I got a breadmaker!! I got a breadmaker!! Woo hoo!!

Yes, some of you are thinking "who the heck cares that she got a breadmaker". I will still make bread for you! :)

My hands have thanked me for not kneading, not one push on the dough, the 5 loaves of bread I have made since Friday!

I have always been a true fan of bread. Oh how much more I love it warm out of the breadmaker with no work from me except throwing everything in a pan and pressing a button!

So far we have made 2 loaves of cinnamon bread. These loaves were my attempt to replicate Great Harvest's Cinnamon Chip bread. While my version did not exactly look like their round loaf of heavenly goodness, it tasted the same, and that is all that matters to me. I am not too picky about presentation; except when it comes to making the bread for giving. Which leads me to explain 2 more loaves of bread. The first version of cranberry white chocolate did not turn out heavenly, the second did. Or so I heard. I gave it away. It looked great coming out of the pan, and it took a lot of mental and physical discipline to keep my serrated knife in the drawer and walk away.

The fifth loaf was jalapeno cheese bread we ate with chili we made on Friday night. Yummy!

Ok, I have made you suffer enough. I will stifle my over the top excitement of a kitchen appliance. So, act surprised if you are gifted with a loaf of bread! :) After all, I am a southern girl and that's what we like to do - cook good food for those we love!

God's Provision

I LOVE Caleb's preschool, Altus Christian Academy. He is thriving there. The staff is great. His teacher, Ms. Kristy, is precious and wonderful. I wish I could send both of our boys to ACA, but the price is a little too much for our wallets right now.

The school is in the process of expanding and about to move into a new building for the next school year. So, they have been having a lot of events for fund raising and awareness for the community and the parents. Well, in the November newsletter the principal, Mrs. Darby, put in the story of how it became possible. I just had to share.

"It was recently brought to my attention that there are several parents in our school who don’t know the wonderful story of God’s provision and affirmation this past summer. It is a story I LOVE to tell, and I still get chill bumps each time. Around the first week of May, the board of directors signed the contract to purchase the facility at 1220 N. Grady. They knew it would take significant funds to renovate the building, so I contacted a development consultant who had helped Christ Academy in Wichita Falls raise funds to construct a new school building. During the conversation, the consultant told me we would likely need at least one donor to give $100,000. I laughed to myself, thinking that was impossible in a small town, and finished the conversation. Three hours later one of the teachers came to my office and said there was a gentleman who wanted to visit with me. He told me that he had a very strong conviction that God had been leading him to support Christian education, and he thought that meant he needed to start a Christian school in Altus. He didn’t even know ACA existed. He visited with some of the staff at Lawton Christian School who told him there was already a Christian school in Altus. He drove back to Altus, to ACA, and asked what we needed. I normally would have said we needed bugs cleaned from the light fixtures, or boards nailed back down on the porch, but the Holy Spirit took over and instead I told him we needed funding for a new facility. He asked if $100,000 would help. I was speechless. God truly does provide, and often in dramatic fashion. I have to remind myself that I serve the same God who created the universe, parted the Red Sea, asked a man to build a boat in the middle of nowhere, healed the blind/lame/leprous, and resurrected our Savior from the dead. He is a God of incredible miracles and is more than powerful enough to provide the funds we need to renovate our building. It is His work, and He will accomplish His purposes. I pray this story will encourage and embolden you the way it did me. There is something very special happening at ACA, and it is all because of God and for His glory."

Is that not amazing and wonderful?! I feel so blessed that Caleb gets to be a part of this school, even if it is for just a short time.

“GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD, FOR HE IS GOOD. HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER”

1 CHRONICLES 16:34

Completion

I love when things are completed. Here are our Halloween weekend happenings and finally the end of some projects and parties.

Remember those paper mache balloons I made? Well, here they are completed and serving their purpose nicely as Power Ranger helmets. The boys loved these costumes! I loved making them cause it reminded me of when mom made my costumes as a little girl. I hope the boys have that nostalgia when they are older.

I made these, cake pops, for Noah's birthday treat for his class. I got the idea from Bakerella. Google it. She is awesome. And while my dipping skills are not in the same class as hers, alas they will eat the same. She was in TX signing her book. I was so close to going, but got distracted by.........

This. This is Kevin's office. He came home and said there was a competition to decorate the different offices for the kid's halloween party. Ok, put up whatever and have a candy bowl. Then he says, if his office wins he gets a day off pass. AN ENTIRE DAY OFF!! I immediately put Caleb in the car and we were off to the craft store. We built the pirate ship, complete with Pumpkin Head Pirate, stringy cob webs, treasure chest of booty and squishy rats. Let's hope he wins!!!!

We decided that it was time to invest in the future of the NBA. Noah shot 6/6 with no assists and had 6 rebounds. He is in LOVE!!! Happy Birthday to Noah!

To go along with the bastketball theme I made Noah a basketball cake. Or this is my interpretation of a basketball. Noah knew what is was and that is all that mattered!

Noah had his birthday party at the bowling alley. It was so much fun! Who knew they gave you a pin for all of your friends to sign?! It was so cool and is proudly displayed in his bedroom. He had lots of friends from school and soccer come out to bowl and share in his happy day! He even had a very special visitor, Mrs. Madl his kindergarten teacher came by for a few mintues! It was such a highlight! Everyone had a great time. Who knew bowling alley parties could be so fun?!!

After all the birthday festivities we were off to our church for fall festival. The boys got to trick or treat, play games, and top off all the birthday cake with halloween cupcakes, sugar cookies, and 2 pieces of trick or treat candy loot! Let's just say I am thankful for the weekend, and am so glad it is over! :)

6 Years Ago

6 years ago Kevin and I were blessed with this sweet boy. Thank you God! Happy Birthday to my boy!