Thanksgiving 2007

We had such a great Thanksgiving week. As always, my parents were the hosts with the most and the time with my sister and her family was so great. The week can basically be summed up by with a few phrases: great food, matching clothes, shopping, and runny noses.

We also had fun going to see Enchanted which was cute and shopping, shopping, and more shopping.

Also, Alyssa and I love to play this old VHS game called Video Clue. It is like the board game + cheesy actors and storylines. The rest of our family hates the game, but we actually got them to all play because I kept talking it up to Lauren all week. I knew that no one would disappoint that sweet girl so we got to play.

Mom's food was unbelievable. Just look at the cake she made in the shape of a turkey! You can see the beautiful table my mom set behind it.


We had a picture made of our entire family which was basically a disaster. We all wore matching clothes, which I thought was funny. The girls matched every day. Here are a few shots of them. My favorite day was on Friday when I did pigtails on all the girls. Camryn looked hilarious. You have to look at Alyssa's blog for those pictures.

Matching Pajamas

"Between Grandma and Santa my list is Covered" and Pigtail Day

This is why it is so hard to get a picture of all three

And of course, because of the weather all of us are sick. We all have runny noses, coughs, and hoarse voices.

And last, here is the newest member of the O'Rear family stuck in a bowl. Hope you had a wonderful week as well!

So much to be thanful for

It is sad that it takes a holiday to make us sit down and really acknowledge what we are thankful for each year. It truly is the moments that we experience each day that bring us the most peace and joy I believe.

I am not listing specific people on this list because those are too easy to think of and the list can get really long. Instead, here is a list of things that I am most thankful for:

1. I am thankful for happy and healthy families.
2. I am thankful for the freedom to worship and openly practice religion in our country.
3. I am thankful for disposable diapers.
4. I am thankful for all the potty training books and tips out there in the world.
5. I am thankful for prayerful and faithful friends.
6. I am thankful for seasons and changing weather.
7. I am thankful for successful and healthy pregnancies.
8. I am thankful for indoor plumbing and heating/AC units.
9. I am thankful for the kitchen gadgets that help me survive every day.
10. I am thankful for pillow top mattresses.
11. I am thankful for direct deposit checks and ATMs.
12. I am thankful for digital cameras.
13. I am thankful for the drive-in.
14. I am thankful for miracle children who are so much healthier than we had ever dreamed possible.
15. I am thankful for puppies and all household animals who are like family.
16. I am thankful for volunteers.
17. I am thankful for tv shows. I am know it sounds petty, but I really am.
18. I am thankful for parks, slides, swings, and swimming pools.
19. I am thankful for strong public and private schools.
20. I am thankful for voice mails from people under the age of 10.
21. I am thankful for voice mails from old friends.
22. I am thankful for grandparents who stay involved in their grandkids lives.
23. I am thankful for books that make the Bible alive to me in new ways.
24. I am thankful for people that forgive and always show patience.
25. I am thankful for bloggers and blogspot.com.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Blogger Guilt

I have blogger guilt. I feel like I should blog but I really have no desire to do it. It is so weird because I usually enjoy blogging so much. There is lots going on and so much I could blog about but I just can't get around to typing it all. SO I will blog about the easiest stand by...television.

Here is what I am watching:

Sundays : Desperate Housewives - It is picking up a little and over all I am enjoying it a little. I loved it when Danielle dressed as Bree and I can't wait to see how the Gabi/Carlos storyline and Danielle's storyline is resolved.

Brothers and Sisters - This show never disappoints me. I really like it. Rob Lowe is so wonderful and I like all of the characters. Does anyone else watch this show?

Monday - Chuck - This is such a great show. It is cute, funny, fast paced, and, of course, I love the love story. So far it has been really clean which I like too.

Heroes - The Adam Monroe twist is at least getting the show to pick up for me a little. I have not enjoyed it near as much this season. When Maya cries tears of death I just roll my eyes.

The Hills - I wish that People magazine didn't already tell me 6 months ago what would happen with this show. I still watch it. Some episodes are so good and there are ones like last week which just seem pointless. And what is up with Justin Bobby answering the questions about Audrina with "She is cool"?

Tuesday - nothing

Wednesday - Private Practice - It is picking up, but I still don't love it. I like to watch it but I don't connect with any of the characters really. I hope that the next few episodes get me hooked on the show.

really I am just ready for Lost to come back on.

Thursday - The Office - Words cannot describe how funny this show is to me. The Survivorman stuff was classic. The clips of Michael surprising people for their birthdays was so funny too. I just love this show.

Grey's - What can I say? I still am a fan. I do not think this season is as good as last season, but I am hooked and I am going to hang in there. At least the Gizzie storyline is ending due to lack of Chemistry! My favorite characters are Alex and Mark Sloan. I hope they do great things with these story lines and of course I still love Bailey. I am so glad she got promoted to Chief Resident again.

Friday - Friday Night Lights - I love this show. I think it is so well written. Coach and his wife are so great. I am interested to see how the Tyra/Landry storyline resolves. I am also interested to see what they do with Riggins and Lyla & what happens to Julie and Matt. This is such a great show.

I also love The Soup and Best Week Ever which totally make me laugh each week.

How is that for a shallow post? Any thoughts?

Fall Festival

We had SO much fun at the fall festival at church. I just love it every year. Carley had so much fun this time. There were lots of activities for all ages which made it super special for little duck.

The fam

Carley's fellow feathered friend, Baby Hudson

Carley and her main man, Charlie, taking a coloring break

Her first painted nails

Vegas Vacation

Cody and I took a little vacation this past week to Las Vegas. We left on Wednesday and came back on Saturday. Of course, my parents were wonderful and kept Carley so we could get away. We had such a great time being together. We hung out, went to see Mamma Mia, went to see Dan in Real Life, shopped, and ate. I did pretty good on the slots and came out even.2nd Row for Mamma Mia

Outside the Bellagio

Hanging with Elton John at Madame Tuseaus

The Cutest Playmate of them all hanging with Hef

In My Arms

Last week Papa, (Granny's husband) who keeps Carley had surgery. This week she has been shared between Cody, my Mom, and me all week. She has done really well, but it has been hectic getting it all organized. My Mom has been a LIFESAVER and has helped so much. Today we didn't have any one so Carley came to work with me. It was hilarious to say the least. My office was not the most productive, but definitely had the highest amount of energy.

At the end of the day, one of the teachers brought down a song for me to listen to and it made me cry. It is called "In My Arms" by Plumb. I had heard it on Air One but just part of it. You have to hear it. Here is a link to her My Space page. I found the lyrics online as well. It is a sweet song that reminded me of my sweet girl.

In My Arms - Plumb

your baby blues
so full of wonder
your curly cues
your contagious smile
and as i watch
you start to grow up
all I can do is hold you tight

knowing clouds will raise up
storms will race in
but you will be safe in my arms
rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
but you will be safe in my arms

story books full of fairy tales
kings and queens and the bluest skies
My heart is torn just in knowing
you'll someday see the truth from lies

knowing clouds will raise up
storms will race in
but you will be safe in my arms
rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
but you will be safe in my arms

Castles they might crumble
dreams may not come true
but you are never all alone
because I will always
always love you

clouds will raise up
storms will race in
but you will be safe in my arms
rains will pour down
waves will crash all around
but you will be safe in my arms

Every office needs Baby Einstein, right?

Watching her favorite movies

Hanging with Mommy at work

TV, TV, TV thoughts

Sunday - Desperate Housewives - I really like what they are doing with Brie's character. The pie stuff was really funny. Susan is kind of annoying to me now. Lynette is great and the cancer stuff with her is a sweet, but tough story. Gaby is hilarious as always and I love her and Carlos.

Brothers and Sisters - Rob Lowe is so cute and such a good actor. I really like all the scenes with him. Kitty needs to brush her hair. She always looks wind blown. I am interested to see what they do with Justin and his recovery and Rebecca. I enjoy this show.

Monday - Chuck - This is the sweetest show. I really like it. It is a good mix of action and comedy and so far it has been very clean. I love the sweet moments between Chuck and Sarah too.

Heroes- Maya and her tears of death are freaky to me. Sylar was back and as evil as ever. I loved him and i love the illusion he provides. I also loved the flying friend for Claire and that will be a cute couple. Nikki still annoys me.

Wednesday - For the first time, I really liked Private Practice. Addison was tough again and liked it. I loved the cake scenes with Naomi and her admitting that she really wanted Sam's cake instead. I know Sam and the dr. from the main hospital will hook up and i am not looking forward to that. Cooper is really a cute character too. It was a good episode.

Thursday - The Office - Real tears came rolling down my cheeks because I was laughing so hard when Andy did "take a chance on me". I loved Monkey and D. D's rage against the machine was hilarious and Michael was a random as ever. The hostage situation and party was genuis. Too funny.
Grey's - I am glad George FINALLY told Callie so that storyline can move on. I liked the flirtation of Alex and Lexi in the elevator. I also was glad Bailey was amazing and wonderful again. She is so good and did a great job with Alex, Mer, and Callie. Also, I used to love this movie called the "North Ave. Irregulars" which is an old Disney movie about a church that takes on a gambling ring. The pastor from that is the new "old" intern and I love that.

Friday - FNL- So good. I am so mad at Landry and Tyra for their stupidity in handling that situation, but I loved their holding hands and kissing. I hope they have some sweet scenes together. As for Matt, I hope he recovers from this Julie thing quickly. I love that guy. Julie is crazy as is the whole household. Poor mom, poor coach far away. I can't wait for them to get him home.

That is it for me. What did I miss?

Sweet Family Stuff

Cody and I went on a date last night to see the musical Ring Of Fire. It was so wonderful to eat at a nice restaurant without Carley and just enjoy visiting. Also a musical is something very "unLubbocklike" which was nice too. Thanks so much to my sweet mom for keeping Carley and putting her to bed for us. Where would I be without Nana?

Also, Cody sent me flowers to work yesterday. There was no reason, he just did it because we had a date that night. This is a sweet and unusual treat and it just meant the world to me. I am so lucky to be Mrs. Cody Nelson and I am so thankful for my best friend. He is just amazing.

Finally, here is our little duck. She is a mess and we love her more and more every second.

Weekly Recap

First of all, thanks for the warm wishes on Carley's behalf. She is doing much better, in fact she is hardly limping at all. She is playing like a champ and enjoys just a little Motrin every now and then.

Also, keep praying for our friend, Bennett Speck. Miracles are happening to him daily and we know that all of these miracles happen because of our amazing Heavenly Father!

So on to TV..

Private Practice - I watch it, but I am not in love with it. I do love Taye Diggs and Naomi, but I am sad that I have a feeling he will sleep with the blond dr. from the hospital before they rekindle their relationship. Also, Addison was whiney and her hair looked weird. Tim Daly is charming and so it Taye. I will keep watching for a little longer before I decide. Thoughts?

The Office - Really funny. My favorite parts were Creed being 29, Kelly faking her pregnancy, and Michael driving into the lake. I also loved the Pam and Jim stuff which I will for sure refer to as PB & J. (from last week) I think Karen will be back before too long because her name keeps being mentioned.

Grey's - Loved the addiction theme. The story of the Crystal Meth explosion was really good. I love Alex kissing the sweet little boy. It makes you wonder what Alex's family is like. I really like the stronger character of Mark Sloan. He is really great and I find myself smiling when he is on screen. He is so cute and charming. Mer and Der. I am addicted to them just like Derek is. Just when I thought they were going to be cute and happy for a few episodes, Mer is weird and he shows no backbone. I am still rooting for them, I am just wanting them to be healthier.

Friday Night Lights - Last night was really good. I LOVE Landry and I am worried what will happen to him. I am ready for the coach to come back. Also, looks like Matt and Julie have a long road ahead of them. Lyla's prayer was at the table was really funny too. I just really like this show.

Finally - CHUCK- People, you need to start watching Chuck. It is funny and creative and clean. It is really good. Cody and I both think it is our favorite of the new season. Have you watched it?

Heroes was good, but I don't understand enough of it to comment.

Any shows I missed?

Carley's First Visit to the ER

Tonight was a sad first in the Nelson home. Cody and I were sitting on the couch and Carley was playing in Cody's lap. She jumped out of his lap and landed wrong on her foot. We were afraid she broke her ankle or leg. She was crying SO loud and couldn't walk on her foot or put any weight on it at all. So we took her to the ER. 3 1/2 hours later we found out she sprained her ankle. She was so good in the ER and waited really well for a one year old. My sweet mom came up there with us and helped entertain Carley. It took a village.... The saddest part of all was her X-Ray. I am not sure I have ever heard her cry like that. Both Cody and I had to hold her down. It was so sad. Anyway, she is feeling better and I am praying for a restful night. We are so thankful for a sprained ankel and not something worse.

That being said, I am just now watching Grey's and the Office tonight. I will post another TV update later

A wonderful weekend

I just have to say, we had a wonderful weekend. Friday we drove to Keller to Alyssa's house for Lauren's 4th birthday. We ate at Buca Di Beppo for dinner. It was SO yummy and way too much food. Then Saturday we went to Lauren's party at Rainforest Cafe. I loved this for so many reasons. #1 - Lauren is so special to me. She is SUCH a sweet girl. She gives hugs and kisses and is so fun to tease and to play with all the time. The thing that I love the most about her right now is how genuine she is. She loves her cousin, her family, her friends, and her life. She asks great questions and really tries to comprehend what is going on around her all the time. That kid does not miss a beat! #2 - I got to see some of my favorite bloggers. Nicole and Kristen were there and I always enjoy catching up with these friends in person.

We spent the rest of the weekend celebrating my sweet mom who had a birthday as well. My mom is SUCH a wonderful person. She truly is the most humble and giving person I know. She is the BEST mom and the VERY BEST NANA! We love her so much and truly I have no idea what I would do in this world without her.

Cody took a shift of vacation for us to go so he got off work on Wednesday night and didn't go back in until tonight. We had such a good time being together. We had Carley's Halloween picture made, went to the mall, went to the park, and enjoyed our car time together. He is so much fun to be with and I truly feel like a better person when he is around.

We were sad to miss a get together with our Lubbock friends from church though. We are so blessed to have so many people to love and have in our lives.

I have one more crazy story for you. A lady I work with and have become good friends with is 27 and she and her husband have 2 kids. She is an amazing person and a ton of fun too. She is also a hero to me because she fought a NASTY battle with bone cancer and won. It was an awful 8 months and she dealt with so much during that time. She finished chemo in November. Since then her body has had trouble getting back in the swing of things. She was a marathon runner before cancer and was training for another one in January. She is just one of those fit, tiny people that I am always friends with but never one of! :) Anyway, she came in my office on Friday and was crying. She asked to use the phone and called a lab to schedule blood work. I was so afraid her cancer was back. Instead, she had taken a pregnancy test and it was positive. Although, this seems like good news, she needed to wait 2 years to get pregnant because of the chemo getting out of her system. I prayed and prayed for her all weekend. Today she came in to call the lab and get her results. The dr. told her to come to his office IMMEDIATELY. She went in and they did a sonogram. She is 18 weeks pregnant with a little boy! 18 WEEKS! She thought she was just a little bloated from the chemo left overs! And the best part is the baby is healthy! He has survived a CT scan, a bone scan, bobsledding in Utah, Six Flags, and several XRays! WOW! Can you imagine finding out you are half way done with your pregnancy? CRAZY! God is very faithful and truly the creator of life!

My Thoughts on Thursday

Here are my TV experiences so far for the fall:

Bionic Woman - stupid
Private Practice - annoying. I really didn't like it that much. I probably will continue to watch it for a few more weeks to see if it picks up.

The Office - WOW! HILARIOUS! - I have been really hungry since training for my 5k (5000 miles) and chicken alfredo will just hit the spot! WHAT? He is so awesome. All I can say is YAY for PB & J. I loved it, loved it, loved it. Special thoughts this morning go out to all with Rabies.

Grey's - This will not be a surprise, but I really liked last night's episode. I really did. I like the Lexie Grey character. I like Alex and McSteamy. I am looking forward to the rekindling relationship of Mark Sloan and Derek Shephard. They have literally been friends since childhood and it was good to see Mark fight for that friendship. Also, I liked seeing Derek a little feisty last night. His rant on why Meredith is so messed up shows that he really does get her and love her. Mere, or poor Mere, her personal life is just all over the place. Bad mom, bad father, now awesome sister. We will see how this plays out. Also, I am interested to see what happens with George, you know, now that he loves Izzie and all.

Thoughts?

You know I am Ashley, You know it is the last week in September, You know what that means....

.....Fall TV. Yep, it is Season's Greetings once again. It is time for the new fall season premiers and I love it. So, because I am addicted to TV, here is what I am planning on trying out and watching.

Sundays - Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters - I am so mad because both made it seem like they were new episodes, but they weren't last week. I am anxious to find out what is going on with both shows this week end.

Mondays - HEROES - It was so good on Monday. I can't wait for Sylar's return. What is up with the boy who can fly?
DANCING WITH THE STARS - At this point, I just watch it a little. There are too many contestants right now for me to get too interested. Who are your picks?
CHUCK- I recorded this, but haven't watched it yet. Did any of you?
The HILLS - Even with a few episodes left, I will remain faithful. I did enjoy the big reveal that Jason is engaged. Thanks to People magazine for telling us this a few months ago.

Tuesdays - Biggest Loser - Man, I teared up when they showed the contestants calling home. So sweet. I can't believe how awesome the contestant voted off looked. I guess age doesn't matter at all!
DANCING - I thought the male model was really cute.

Wednesdays - I am about to try out PRIVATE PRACTICE. It will have to be better than the preview episode on Grey's was last season. I am really ready for LOST to come back on. Also, I am going to watch BIONIC WOMAN tonight and see if I like it too.

Thursdays - The Office and Grey's....all I can say is I can't wait. I absolutely can't wait!

Fridays - FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS - I love this show and I am ready for it to return, especially with the new baby story line.

That is my fall line up. What are you watching?

Carley's friends from Granny's & 8 things

Granny & Papa (the people who keep Carley while we work) took this picture of Carley and her friends on the first day that all the kids were back. I thought it was really cute. Some of you know the sweet baby propped up against Carley and I thought you would like to see it too. These little kids have become like siblings to Carley in a way and I am very thankful for them.

I have now been tagged SEVEN times to do the 8 things about me post. Man, the pressure. Lord knows I have few to no filters about what I share online so I have had so much trouble coming up with 8 things about me that you don't already know. I really can not come up with anything interesting. Here is the best I can do:

1. My dad made me get a haircut one time for yelling at my mom while she was french braiding my hair. He was tired of us fighting in the mornings. I will never forget that day. My family still talks about this story often. This is the only time in the history of my family that my Dad ever gave an opinion about hair.

2. I don't like coffee. I don't like the smell of it either. It just looks like burned water to me. I also do not like cold cereal or eggs. The texture of both kill me. I only like to drink milk at night and not in the morning.

3. I came in second place in the Martin Elementary spelling bee in 4th grade. I lost out on the word cherish. I did not "cherish" the moment of losing and vowed to never use the word again.

4. I can still write down my class schedule and room numbers of all my years in public education. (Kindergarten, Mrs. Beavers room, 113; 1st grade Mrs. Prater, 119; etc.). I have a knack for memorizing songs and TV theme songs. I have won 3 TV/commercial theme contests. My memory is so good that it is embarrassing sometimes so I pretend like I don't remember so people do not think I am a psycho stalker. In my head I am thinking, " We met in the frozen food section of Walmart. You were in a yellow sweatshirt, I was in a gray T-Shirt. You were with my friend, Sally Ann Walker, whose phone number is 123-4567 and birthday is 1-1-03." But I usually pretend like I can't place them.

5. I hit my first grade teacher when I was running away from school. I didn't like first grade at ALL until Christmas time when I got to be Mary in the school play. Before then, I would scream, cry, and try to run away all the time. After that, I was okay.

6. I have the same birthday as Texas Independence Day. When I was 8, Texas turned 150 and the Vice President at the time, George Bush Sr., came to Lubbock for some speech. My family went and we sat behind the white house press. They took my address and Mr. and Mrs. VP send me an autographed picture, a letter, and a copy of the speech. It was so neat. Another great story is that my big sister, Alyssa, had to take me to bathroom right before the speech. Somehow on the way back in I got away and ran in and my sister got stopped and was not allowed to enter because the speech had started. She started crying and thought she was in National trouble. I went back to my seat with out thinking twice about her. Once again, I got in trouble.

7. I do not like my smile at all. I have a mole on my top lip that always makes it look like I have food of my face and my top lip rolls under when I smile. I used to get made fun of for both of these things when I was in 6th grade and it still bugs me to this day.

8. If I am not thinking about it, I blow on any food that I am eating with a fork or spoon before it goes in my mouth. This is a horrible and embarrassing habit and I have gotten caught a couple of times. Cody caught me blowing on my salad last week and I blew on ice cream at work the other day. Most of the time I catch myself before someone else does, but sadly, not always.

Finally, please keep praying for our sweet Bennett Speck. He is a month old today. I can not imagine how this month has been for Travis and Kelly.

A Perfect Day

Today was a perfect day. My idea of a perfect day has changed so much in the past 20 months since Carley rocked our world. I just wanted to document today to remind myself how simple things are really what matters.

1. Carley slept past 7:00 am
2. We ate breakfast with my parents.
3. Cody was off all day.
4. We went to the mall and just walked around and looked at stuff. We let Carley run around my the fountain and she thought it was the coolest thing. It was so great to be at the mall without an agenda and without spending money. Here she is laughing at the fountain.
5. We went to the park and played, played, played.
6. Carley (and me) took a two and a half our nap.
7. We went to Coyote Candle Company and KidSpace just to walk around and have fun.
8. Cody and Carley went with me to the grocery store. Most of the time I go alone. Today it was fun to joke around with Cody the whole time.
9. I cooked a new casserole from my new Kraft Foods magazine. (It was the one with chicken, veggies, and Stove Top)
10. Carley peed in her new Dora potty TWICE today!
11. We had a family tea party.
12. Carley and Cody had a movie date while they watched Finding Nemo. It lasted about 5 minutes, but Carley thought it was so fun.
13. Cody did all the dishes today.
14. Carley said "Love You Momma" really clearly before she went to sleep.
15. I got a precious picture in the mail that my niece Lauren drew of her visit to my house a couple of weeks ago. It is so sweet and cute.
16. Cody and I both in our pjs at 8:15 and are about to watch a movie then go to sleep.

Here are some pictures from today.

"Chillin" over the Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day Weekend - Yeah, it was a week ago and I am just now posting. That is how we roll at the Nelson Home these days. Anyway, we had a wonderful Labor Day weekend. On Saturday we did some serious shopping. We bought a new camera which we love. It came out last weekend so it is super brand new and has the fastest shutter speed of the small cameras and the biggest LCD screen. It is also touch screen. Anyway, we love it and got a great deal on it thanks to our Best Buy Reward Zone bucks. Also, I bought the cutest pink case for it for my purse.

Then we went to Home Depot and bought a freezer. We felt like a real family with a freezer in the garage. As you can see from the picture, we needed it to have room for the frozen food we keep for Carley (Quesadillas, Mini Corn Dogs, Chicken Nuggets, etc) for her lunch. It is great.

On the bottom shelf you can see our first ever batch of homemade ice cream. It was strawberry and delicious. Here is a picture of Cody and Carley sharing a bowl. It was a hit.

On the topic of frozen foods, have you tried the frozen cheese ravioli? The brand we buy is called Rosita and it is in the freezer section of United, Walmart, and Sams. It is our new favorite quick dinner. The ravioli are big and round like you get a Olive Garden and they are SO good. Plus they are ready in 5-7 minutes. It is even easier than spaghetti and Carley loves them too. You should try them.

During Labor Day weekend we got to have a visit from tow of my favorite people, Mark and Tara Rich. Of course I had my new camera and forgot to take a picture. Nice. And we spent lots of time with Pop and Nana (my parents). Once again, no pictures. Nice. So even if you buy a camera that fits in your purse, you still have to take it out of your purse to take pictures. That is my wisdom for today.

Please continue to pray for Bennett Speck and his precious parents. They need your prayers and encouragement.

Reasons this has been a good week

This has been a really good week for the Nelson family. We have so much to be thankful for each day. As we continue to pray for sweet baby Bennett and his family, I am so encouraged to see how many friends and family we all have out there in the world. It is amazing how comforting it is to see other people being prayed for each day, hour, and minute in difficult time. Blessed Be the Name of the Lord.

Here are some other (not as important) reasons that this is a good week:

1. We told our staff they could wear jeans, t-shirts, and tennis shoes all week. The first week of school is always so hard on everyone's feet. You can't imagine the morale boost this has been this week. I have loved wearing tennis shoes all week and it has been so fun to see our teachers so happy! :)

2. I got a new office over the summer. This one is literally a corner office with a window and it is so nice. I feel like I still get to see the beautiful days and with the sun shining in each morning.

3. Carley can sing (sort of) "This is the Day". It is precious to hear her sing scriptures. I just love it.

4. A good friend of mine who has been trying to get pregnant for about 5 years found out this week she is having twins! PRAISE THE LORD! She is so excited. Once again, God has answered a prayer of longing for this sweet couple.

5. My sister is closing on the sell of her house and the purchase of their new home. This has been something that they have wanted for a long time. The best part for me is that Lauren and Camryn are here for the week. Carley is loving her cousin time and I am eating up my "aunt" time. They are the sweetest girls. Tonight they are coming over to my house while Cody is at the station for a girl's night. We are going to play in the sprinkler and eat pizza. No boys allowed.

6. On the same note, since they are here we are eating dinner with my parents each night. It is so nice not to have to cook, but to still have those meals for your family. I am so thankful for my parents. They still look after me in so many ways.

7. This is the part of the Dawson's Creek reruns where Joey and Pacey get together. These are my favorite episodes so I DVR them on TBS and watch them after Carley goes to bed. Ah, young teenage love.

8. I have been a sneaky matchmaker lately for two friends of mine with two other people. So far it is working out good. I love to meddle a little bit! :)

9. Another one of my good friends bought a house on our street. Her kids are a little older than Carley, but it will be fun to be around. That is two people in my wedding with in a block of me! Fun times!

10. My best friend from elementary school, Marcy, called me last night with some exciting news for their family. Her husband Chris, who I grew up with too, is a wonderful singer. He signed a 10 month contract yesterday to sing on Broadway (in NYC) in the Phantom of the Opera! He moved from Lubbock this week and she and her kids move at the end of the semester. Can you imagine being a Broadway star? I am so happy for them.

Anyway, it feels like last week I couldn't find much joy. It was an exhausting and slow week. This week I really tried to look for great things. What good is going on for you this week?

Local Heroes

To my recollection, in my 200+ posts, I have never blogged about sports. I enjoy watching sports, but it is never a huge passion of mine. There are certain teams that I do keep up with, but none as faithfully as I have the past few weeks with a 12 year old Little League Team from Lubbock. They have taken our city captive with their sweet and enthusiastic interviews, great attitudes, and a reminder that dreams do come true.

The first night we moved into our new home back in May, our new next door neighbor, Taylor, was playing catch in the front yard. All summer we could find him right outside Carley's window with 2 other boys. Occasionally, I had to be the mean neighbor next door and ask them to not yell outside of her window after 10:00 pm and they were always so sweet about. ( I am sure they have a nickname for me though) In June Cody came home from the station and said that the guys at work were talking about our neighbor and a few other kids and that one day they would be famous. They even teased Cody saying that one day Taylor would be on ESPN and I would be bragging that I was the neighbor that told him to be quiet. We had no idea that would be just two months away.

It has been so fun to watch this team from Lubbock make it to the finals of the Little League World Series. They just lost in the finals today after a great season. One of the boys goes to our church and 5 of them go to Frenship. Two of the moms teach in Frenship and another mom has the same job I have in FISD in Lubbock. All of the boys are sweet and humble and so darn excited. It has been really neat.

At our district convocation the 5 Frenship boys spoke to us from Williamsport. They wished us a good year and said thanks for making their dreams come true. They were so funny talking about how they had been together for a long time, since they were 10 (they are all 12), and they knew they would be friends for life. One boy said that he had dreamed of this moment since the day he was born. Their perspective on lifelong friendships and dreams really made me smile. It is funny how our view of time changes as we get older and our dreams change too.

Congrats to these sweet boys and their families. I pray that my child has dreams that come true too.

Please continue to pray for Travis, Kelly, and Bennett Speck in my previous post. They need a dream to come true right now in a very big way.

Bennett Mitchell Speck

Please pray for this sweet baby boy. We was born on Monday with a serious infection. He and his mommy are in different hospitals as he fights a HUGE fight for a 2 day old and Kelly S. recovers from a C-section. Please keep Bennett, Kelly, and Travis in your prayers.

Here is a blog set up for Bennett. Please keep praying.

Exhaustion

I am so exhausted. It has been over a week since I last blogged and I have nothing to say. This is very weird for me. I guess I will just talk about my week and wait for something humorous or exciting to hit me.

Lauren, my three year old niece, was here this week. As always, she is hilarious, precious, and amazing rolled into one little red head. Sunday I saw her for just a minute. Monday she came over for a little while. Tuesday we went to Rosas for Taco Tuesday. Wednesday she and Nana picked Carley up from Granny's for me and then we all went to Chucky Cheese. Thursday my sister and sweet niece Camryn came in to join the fun and we went to Lujans. Friday we went to Taco Villa and Saturday morning we went to Lubbock Breakfast House. Yep, that is a LOT of eating out. It was so fun though. Lauren is a jewel and she gives the best hugs. Camryn has learned to say my name and my heart melts every time she sees me, reaches out her little arms and calls my name.

Since I do most of the staff development for our school, staff development days are CRAZY for me. When kids are in session, my job is easier because teachers are busy. When there are no kids, teachers have more free time which keeps me more on my toes. To start the week off my AWESOME assistant, Jeremy, was offered a promotion to go to our Central Office. Of course I supported him totally and was so happy for him when he got the position, but it totally broke my heart. We are great friends and we work really well together. For those of you who need assistants, I highly recommend hiring a male. They don't gossip, they come to work to work and then go home, they don't nest, and they don't take it all too seriously while at the same time they get a lot done, at least this is always my experience. So I spent the rest of the week interviewing for his replacement. All week I was very teary about his promotion. Good byes are so hard for me. I am so selfish and want to keep everyone I love and enjoy close to me forever. Nothing brings tears for me like good byes. I am just horrible about them. I think that is why I always tape and rewatch and rewatch and rewatch last episodes to TV shows and I read the end of a book a minimum of three times. I am just really big on closure. (and I am crazy) Cody was so great this week and was really supportive the whole time. He loves Jeremy too and knows what a loss this is for me.

I read a lot of books in the evenings. I have been kind of in a recluse kind of mood lately and reading is always good for that. I finished the Firstborn series by Karen Kingsbury and read the first on of her Sunrise series books. I also started Eclipse which is the third book in my vampire love story series. This books are so good. I can not stop gushing about them!

Finally Carley has been the light of my week. We have had so much fun having tea parties in the evenings. She is SO feminine which is SO funny considering I am her mom. She loves baby dolls, bottles, tea parties, bows, and all sorts of little girl stuff. Saturday she and I spent the entire day home together playing until Cody came home. She is in such a great phase right now.

I am exhausted. This week has been a killer. It is amazing to me each time I get this tired how much I feel God working in my life. Our God is such a loving and caring Father. He has answered prayers of energy, peace, and security for me this week a million times. He truly is our Daily Bread. My self reliance is such a joke and He patiently lets me know that in subtle ways. I am very thankful that my daughter and dog have already gone to bed and I am about to rest in the arms of my patient and caring husband and under the watchful and doting eyes of my Heavenly Father who delights in knowing that I am at rest and at peace.

I hope you have a blessed week.

Vegas Vacation

Cody and I are going to do a weekend get a way in Vegas in October. (anyone want to come??)
I have been one time and stayed with my BFFVV, Tiffany at the Mandalay Bay. It was SO awesome, but pricey. Since we split the room, it wasn't a big deal.

Anyway, Cody has never been. I want us to stay at a cool place, but I am not sure if it is worth it to drop the BIG bucks at a super nice place. Where have you stayed when you were there and what would you recommend?

Back in the Swing of Things

Publish PostWell, the transition back to working was much easier than I expected. Carley went right back to Granny's as if she had just been gone a weekend. She just marched right in with her lunch box and started playing. In fact, my feelings were a little hurt that she didn't cry for me or miss me. Keep in mind I said a "little". I am so glad she is happy there and well taken care of with Granny and Papa. Carley also has a new buddy named Hudson who is 3 months old and super cute. She thinks he hung the moon.

As soon as I got back to work it felt good. I forgot the energy that I receive from being in that environment. Everyone was great and I got to start training my favorite people, new teachers. They are always super excited and ready to get started.

I can't thank all of you enough for your comments, emails, and prayers as I started back to work. It is a blessing to be encouraged by so many friends. Leaving Carley is always hard, it always will be. Missing her sweet smile, funny games, and precious legs will always bring tears to my eyes in a split second. Thanks for understanding my post and supporting the decision that my family made.

In other news, my mom and I (mostly my mom) recovered the kitchen chairs. The fabric was the one my grandmother had when they were hers. The leaves reminded me of her, but they definitely were out dated and dark. I loved the new fabric. You can kind of see it here. It is navy, sage, and brown. I think it looks good in our kitchen.

Finally, some picture of Carley for no reason other than I think she is cute.

I'll come out and say I watched it....

So, it is the dumbest reality show in the history of reality shows. (which is saying a lot)
So, I hated all of the characters, including the "bachelor" Mark.
So, I am not sure at all why I watched it.
So, he choose the 25 year old who didn't even know how to make a salad.
So, it was trashy, trashy, trashy.

So, I admit. I watched it.

Anyone else?

The Post I Knew Was Coming

Well, friends, it is August. For those in the Education business, that means, "back to work". There are so many things I could post about on this topic.....how I will miss Carley, why I am ready to go back, why I work, what my job does for our family, what my fears are about being a working mom, how blessed I feel by my situation, how sad I feel to miss moments with Carley, the benefits of adult time, and a thousand other thoughts.

Tuesday is my first day back at work. Cody is going to be home that day for a special day with just him and Carley. They are going to go to the park, read books, and stuff like that and then Wednesday she will start back at Granny's. Granny and Papa are a retired couple that keep 4-6 teachers kids. They are such a blessing. Carley has missed them and her friends from Granny's over the summer. We have gone by every three weeks or so just to say HI. They are the nicest couple and they love the kids so much. Their house has a million toys and they are always doing fun things with the kids. I heard Carley talking on her play phone to Granny today and I teared up. I am SO thankful that Carley loves Granny and that she is blessed to have an extra grandmother in Granny. I also tear up because I know that Granny has a special place in her heart because of the time they spend together, which is time away from me. Carley has learned so much from the 3 and 4 year olds at Granny's. They have taught her to play run games like red light/green light, hide and seek, and she loves to watch them color. They kick the ball with her and stuff like that, which is sweet. I am so glad she has her friends there. She gets so bored here with just me sometimes and I am so glad she has new toys to look at every day there.

Being a mom is tough. It is a HUGE BLESSING, but it is tough. I think it is tough to stay home and miss out on adult conversation. I think that it is tough to stay home and actually stay home and not run errands all day or spend money at Target, like I do in the Summer. It is tough to provide for your family, especially retirement, savings, and stuff like that. Stay at Home moms sacrifice a lot to be with their sweet children and I know that it is very worth it. I also think it is hard to work outside of the home. I think it is hard to get up and out the door with lunches packed, bows on, and sanity at 7:10 in the morning. I think it is hard to give your all to other people and other situations all day and then come home and try to give your all to your kids, husband, and home. I think it is hard to miss out on moments and not feel guilty. I just think being a mom is tough. Of course, all of us would agree we wouldn't change it for the world.

The other day I was somewhere and a mom said, "I am not the kind of mom who could be away from her kids all day". I knew what she meant and that it had absolutely no condemnation or judgment on the moms that choose to be away from their kids all day. The comment has stuck with me though. I don't think that it is always that simple. I think that moms choose to work outside of the home for the same reasons some moms choose not to work outside of the home. I think that we all do it because we feel like it is what is best for our families. If I choose to completely stay home, Cody would have to work 48 hour shifts for us to keep up our bills. For us, Carley only seeing her Daddy two days a week. for a couple of hours, is not a better situation. This way she gets to see both of us every day. Not all husbands have nontraditional schedules like mine. That excuse isn't the same for everyone. Also, Cody and I get to have a lunch date every week. It is a special time for us and our marriage and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Also, my work and Granny's are 5 minutes apart. For some moms, if they worked outside of the home, they would spend their whole day in traffic going to and from work and daycare and home. I am starting to ramble, so I will cut it off, and just say this:

Summer is ending and I will miss my undivided Carley time. I loved the pool, Jump N Jungle, the park, Sea World, running errands, and cuddle time. I will miss our midmorning tea parties. Being away from her breaks my heart into a million pieces whenever I think about it. Being a Christian example to her is my most important job as well as providing her with love and security. I pray that I am not "screwing her up" by my choice to have a career outside of the home.

I will miss cooking so much for Cody and doing more stuff around the house. I had fun cooking big meals and taking care of all of the errands so that when he was home, all he had to do was play with me and Carley. I am looking forward to our weekly lunch dates at exotic restaurants like Taco Bell and Subway. I pray that I always save my energy for home and our marriage and I don't spend it on other people. I pray that he knows that he is my most important relationship on earth and I treasure him more than my career.

I am looking forward to going back to work. I love my job. I love problem solving and decision making. I love having an office and a desk and no pacis in my pockets. I love talking about adult things and not getting interrupted. My financial psychotic side loves know that we have savings, retirement, and some money towards college. I love having money for Sonic drinks. And honestly on days, where Carley has diarrhea, like today, I don't miss the smell. I also love being around nonChristians. I know that sounds weird, but I like inviting people to church, praying with people who are having a hard day, and telling people about Jesus. I am not saying at all that you can't do that at the grocery store, or the park, or wherever you are, I am just saying that school is the perfect place for sharing your faith. I love the people I work with and my job.

I know this is the longest post ever and I am super sorry about that. It is just some late night ramblings from a torn heart. I love being a mom and I love all of you out there. I know that many of you struggle with all of these same feelings and emotions. I am truly thankful for you, my blog friends, who support me in many ways. I am thankful for the ways that you choose to honor God's calling to love your families and the many different ways you do it. I am thankful that we have a relationship without judgment or condemnation, but instead of support and admiration.

Get your pencils sharpened, your folders labeled, and your new brown leather shoes. School is back in session.