Thankful for you my handsome man

This week we truly have so much to be thankful for,

not the least of which is my sweet hubby's 50th birthday!

My soulmate, my best friend, the keeper of all secrets.

He never fails to enter a room without a touch , a hug , or at minimum- a "mwah" from across the room.

He is an honest & loyal husband. He is selfless & loves unconditionally.

He never responds in haste. He loves our daughters with a tender strength.

He wipes away tears, listens intently, holds hands, & loves to spend time individually with each one. Never complains, goes to my favorite vacation spot as if it were his favorite one too, lets me choose movies, music, our out-to-eat destinations and....well....basically he lets me choose just about everything. & daily reader of my blog.....

Happy 50th handsome.....

I pray I can spend your next 50 years showing you how much I love you!

xo

Couple of things.....several of you emailed or asked about Caroline's plum velvet skirt. It is from a dutch line Jottum and I purchased it a couple of years ago......& yes , I too would love one for myself!

Each year I have the delusions of grandeur....thoughts that i will be "all caught up" with crafts and projects so that I can enjoy the holidays. Well sure enough, each year Thanksgiving rolls around and I realize I didn't quite get there...any one else feel that way?

My goal really is to simplify my decorations & my goals this holiday season . I love having my home decorated but I want to only use my favorite items, not pull out every single Christmas item & try to find a place for it. That wears me out & usually looks too cluttered in my home anyway.

For months now I have raced out each morning to head to the gym. Once it has started to cool down I really love to spend more time feathering my nest. I can run a couple of miles around my neighborhood & finish much quicker than spending a couple hours at the gym...but i do need to be careful & not put back on the weight i have lost so far! But I want to enjoy my home, plan yummy meals, keep things peaceful so that when my family returns from their busy days their home is a calm haven not a dirty unorganized place where mom is in a tizzy....well, that's the goal anyway. And its also very very important to me that I am spiritually in a place to focus on the true meaning of Christmas.

well....here are a few layouts from Jenni Bowlins sept or oct kit...can't remember which & i've already confessed i'm behind...but i'm ok with that!

Happy Happy Thanksgiving

to each one of you.

May your homes be blessed!!!

happy girl

Everybody knows

That the sweetest thing that you'll ever see

In the whole wide world

Is a happy girl

martina mcbride

Yesterday the older girls were arguing over who borrowed who's chi, earrings, boots, cami's ....the list went on. Savannah commented that in a couple of years she'd be gone off to college & "that would make it all easier" --oh my.... i know that day will be here in the blink of an eye. i can't even imagine that stage.... My prayer is that while she's here, under my roof, i let her know what a great girl she is. that our home is a safe haven where she can refuel, where she can feel loved & accepted, where she can just be real and let her guard down. that she knows i'm always on her team & her number one fan...no matter what.

I've said this before, but she has been an absolute breeze to raise. she is a happy girl with a super sense of humor. she is completely self motivated , dependable and smart as a whip. she has chosen some of the absolute sweetest girls as her besties. her sophmore class is such a great group of friends & they seem to really support each other. her fave movie is High School Musical and her fave groups are the Jo Bros & Taylor Swift ( don't forget david cook but he's just not as squeeky clean sounding as these others !) ....I mean for crying out loud, how great is that. she's such a better kid than i was at that age ( sorry mom) & i am just so stinkin proud to be her mom.

last weekend we traveled to south georgia to watch her squad compete in the state competitive cheerleading finals. we watched 99, thats right i said 99 routines ( complete with really loud music & of course loud fans). our school competes in the classification of the largest schools in the state. they rocked. they looked awesome. they nailed all their tumbling & put on a stellar performance. she was so pumped. i loved seeing her so proud of herself!! they came in 9th in the state which is awesome!! you wouldn't believe all the phenominal tumbling skills of these highschool girls! thankfully all those early years in gymnastics have paid off :)

are they sweet friends or what?

unfortunately our football team lost in the first round of the playoffs , so cheerleading for the fall is over. but it truly has been an absolute blessing to watch her have a blast

~ totally in her element!

these teenage years can be so hard for so many, even a devestating time for some. i have such a grateful heart that she truly is a happy girl.

state event...

savannah is right in the middle doing a back tuck

round off back handspring back tuck

second from the right on the far edge

have a great week!

woodland pixie

pixie~

a fairy like creature

a playful sprite

bless her heart--each time she gets a hair cut, it's cause for a little impromptu photo shoot.

& what a good sport she is as i can't even confess to you just how many shots i took!

my little pixie has had several doctors appointments recently for some visual disturbances she is experiencing. she told us a few weeks ago that she often saw colored dots or wiggly lines, maybe saw stars, etc. we took her to see our pediatrician who originally in our phone convo mentioned several things it may be....one of which scared me to death. obviously, being a pediatric nurse i have seen my fair share of scary diagnosis, being an oncology nurse i've seen even more. i've already confessed my major medical fears here before....needless to say i was very scared. after she saw her, she really felt more that these were symptomatic to migraines.

she referred us to a neurologist. caroline was completely aok with all this. she planned her

'dr appt ensemble' days in advance. she was so stinkin cute that day & completley oblivious to the potentional seriousness of the visit. the neurologist spent time with us & felt quite confident that this was indeed related to migraines.

she has complained of headaches even as a younger child. that in & of itself is unusual. small children should not complain of frequent headaches. but none of them presented to me as a migraine. the neurologist went on to explain that younger children will experience the symptoms associated with migraines and then as they mature, the symptoms and the headaches will merge together simultaneously as an adult would experience.

he felt quite confident that this was 'nothing more' but he still wanted to run tests.

she will have an MRI wednesday & has been referred to a pediatric opthamologist.

on a lighter note--i wanted to share a super easy & yummy potato soup recipe i found from an older paula dean magazine.

1 30oz bag frozen hash brown potatoes

3 14 oz cans chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 c chopped onion

1/4 tsp fresh black pepper

1 80z cream cheese

combine all but cream cheese in your crockpot & cook on low for 5 hours.

stir in cream cheese & cook for 30 minutes

garnish with fresh green onion or freshly baked crumbled bacon & add freshly grated sharp cheese

our local grocery store ( pulbix) will make sourdough bread bowls if you order them in advance.

such a great presentation

i'm telling you what.....

every one will leave the table thinking you're wonderful!

enjoy your lovely fall weekend

xo