Wednesday, October 28, 2009

.....BOO!...

well alrighty
since that lost post was a little wordy
i'll switch gears & show a few more little glimpses of fall at our home
& try not to be so wordy


these little velvet pumpkins are all the rage this year.
there were some kits available on olive juice but i think she's sold out...i'll be sure to hook up early next year with her because i think i need a charcoal, brown, & orange one too

i probably should be ashamed to admit this, but i am so in love with jennifer lanne's paintings & in my own oil painting class i copy them...yep i do....flat out copy....her use of color is fantastic & since i'm not selling them ( duh....) & i am giving her all the credit for the inspiration then this is more of a confessional right? surely its not illegal if you just 're-create' them, keep them hidden away in your own home, but give the original artist all the glory...right? oh i do hope so....





little bit with my over the top cute penny mcallilster pumpkin man
he's huge
& then below
she's a little disenchanted since its empty
of candy corn....
oops
another confession











some oldies
pre-digi days












& a couple of my fave costumes
emi as twister girl


& smk and buddies as M & M's








& finally one of my favorite images of my girls
sadly
my little baldy was starting to get sick that day
{guess i was so busy trying to get them all to smile
that i didn't notice how puny she looked
god love her}
& ended up in the emergency room
with a temp of 105
double ear infection
& croup
but mom got the christmas card picture that year!
but look at her pitiful little face
bad mommy



& speaking of christmas pictures
(i heard that collective sigh)
i'm a little conflicted this year
does anyone have any tips?
we usually send out over 150 cards
which financially adds up quickly

i'm bummed because either i'm dropping friends like flies
or folks are really cutting back on the expense
and we recieve less & less each year


anyway
i'm trying to decide if i want to do it again this year
i'm not sold out on any one pic in particular
i sent a collage type one last year....
but those were pricey


anyway


oh brother

i promised not to be wordy

Thursday, October 22, 2009

grace.......


I believe the two most challenging phases of parenting occur during the toddler years & then again in adolescence. in both phases our child is gaining Independence. remember erikson's stages? in the ole' stage two, our toddler age child is bidding for autonomy. they are realizing that they are separate from mommy.
then you sort of cruise merrily through those middle years. seriously, has anyone ever said, "boy, once you get through the 9 year old stage, you're home free"
sure nuf, the tween & teen years can sorta hit you out of nowhere. that once placid, sweet child now can seem withdrawn, angry and moody.

whenever i decide to write about parenting, let me assure you, its coming from a mom that is desperately trying to get it right. not someone who has mastered this. i want to share a little bit of what the lord is currently working on in my heart.

i find it very easy to parent the daughter who is much like me. i understand the 'why' when she reacts the way she does. i know how she rolls. i get her.
but the child , or maybe 2 of mine whose make-up is much different than mine are much more of a challenge for me. when you factor in personality traits, birth order, love languages, & temperaments ( just to name a few) parenting my child effectively can seem like a very daunting task.

one area i feel the lord is really working on my heart is the area of grace.
i am by nature not a patient person. type A, first born, perfectionist, busy, & did i mention impatient. having a home that is full of grace is my ultimate & what most days feels like an impossible goal.

Grace Based Parenting by tim kimmel is an excellent book. much of what i'm writing today was gleaned from his writings or are his direct quotes.

back to adolescence~
"the real test of a parenting model is how well equipped the children are to move into adulthood as vital members of the human race."

"parents who embrace grace make their homes a safe place for average kids to develop into extraordinary people. weakness & inadequacy aren't a big deal" says kimmel.

children are going to need to know how to:
work hard
get along with difficult people
solve confusing problems
handle $
forgive
repent
fear God alot
fear their fellowman very little
laugh at the right time
cry at the better time
& be able to bring out the best in the people closest to them.

these characteristics won't just happen on their own. childhood should provide ample time as a parent to build assurances in my girls that they have been given all they need to take out into their world as an adult.

one conviction for me is the area of control. i don't want to try to control my girls environment so that its so structured with tight boundaries that when they leave the nest all i have exposed them to is children whose parents believe the same thing i do, who are in the same tax bracket , and even the same culture. the real world is nothing like that. i want to guide them~~ YES! but i want to equip them so that they have security in their hearts, signifigance in their lives & strength for their future . & they can fully rely on God's presence in their life...not the safety nets i've tried to place around them.

my prayer is that our home is a place where my girls are free to be "different, vulnerable & candid, and to make mistakes yet learn what the genuine love of God looks like".
that's a tough one for me, i'll be honest.
i want my girls to be well liked, well rounded, & spiritually grounded.
different? not really.
make mistakes? i'd prefer minor ones, the ones everyone doesn't have to hear about.
i'm pretty much all for the 'everything is just great kinda family'. but i must daily laydown what i want them to be, "who" i want them to be.
& i need to give them a little freedom too.
especially in this phase of development....personally i don't feel i need to be everyones room mom, team mom, be at each dance, offer to drive every carpool, attend every field trip.
they can spread their wings & honest to goodness, even be discipled or taught by another adult. i don't have to be the everything mom just to show them i love them. i can allow them their space & show them that they are trusted and that i have confidence in them...the 'them' away from me.

grace
"grace will keep me from clamping down on their spirits while they move through awkward transitions and walk through the valley of the shadow of adolescence".

grace
i want to dan & i to be parents that forgive.

grace
i want my marriage to be a lighthouse, permanently established to show my girls the way home

grace
i want my girls to feel loved...especially on the days when they are hardest to love

grace
when they screw up....i don't want to act surprised

grace
showing them sensitivity towards the battles that they face. especially the ones that i don't understand

grace
"realizing that christ didn't die for me because i had good qualities that were worth saving
but because i had bad qualities that left me without a prayer"


i'll leave you with one more word from tim
"you'll probably never know the profound impact that the giving of grace will have on your children's vulnerabilities but its obvious how much devastation can be wrought if you don't"

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

poppies? no~cosmo! who knew?

addendum to original post:
thankfully one of my bloggy friends corrected me
because clearly i don't know flowers
i love a good humbling moment for all to see!

one of the local highways features these amazing purple
--
(what i embarrassingly thought were poppies but now know they are)

cosmo
along its banks each year.
they are quite a sight.
sunday i was driving home from work with my mind running in a million different places. i was completely captivated when i came upon these glories in all their splendor.
these shots were actually captured a couple of years ago at the exact same time. & yes, many a commuter thought i was crazy doing a little impromptu photo shoot in the middle of the highway.
whatever








figured i'd share a few peeks of fall around our home~


i had really hoped to slap a huge monogram decal
on my big orange pumpkin that's nesting in the urn
but just haven't gotten around to it yet
we'll see





time to pull out the turkey transferware

& bake chocolate chip pumpkin bread

years ago i purchased loads
& i mean loads
of different seasonal laminated placemats
surely my teenagers won't think they're too mature for these cuties





my fave little posh velvet pumpkin

& a glittered one too

the fireplace
that might just hold anything
but a fire
the last of the sunflowers



my fave madagascar candle who was entirely too boring until i spruced him up a bit










hopefully its going to cool down enough
to wear my new boots that santa scored
he gave me the ok to enjoy them early!!
i sure love that boy!

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

a fracture, football games, & fun dates

With only a week to go before their first game, Savannah injured herself at tumbling practice.
For those of you familiar with tumbling jargin, she had just thrown a full--it was perfect--except for the fact that she landed just a little funny on her foot.
funny enough that it tore ligaments,
broke the bone in her heel
& bruised the bones in her foot.

for two months she has been quite the trooper
doctor visits
MRI
physical therapy
discomfort
wearing an ugly black brace
& maintained a great spirit the entire time!
less than 48 hours before her first competition this year
she was cleared to jump
these first two images are from her first night 'back in action'







unfortunately for the last two months there have been no tumble passes
no fulls
no triple toe backs
no layouts
no front hurdlers
none of these....






























I have hated that she missed so many weeks from tumbling her junior year.
she cheers both for the football squad & the competition squad
but hopefully we're on the road to recovery
we know it could have been much worse








(this image used by permission from the Gwinnett Daily Post)
Emily has made her debut into the cheerleading world this fall & loves it.
She seems to be quite a natural.
Pictured below at her first competition rocking her toe touch!









I mentioned in my previous post that our area suffered flooding after severe rainstorms.
our home was not damaged but many in the area are still rebuilding & will be so for quite sometime to come.
it seemed like it rained for days

sadly it stormed on the night of savannah's homecoming
needless to say, i do NOT prefer my indoor shots
i've got to figure out iso & other camera thingies

she & her bestie went with the sweetest boys ever
& had such a fabulous time despite the dreadful weather







that darn ankle still causing a little difficulty !

just being silly while the boys where in another room
because of course
they're way too mature to horse around like this
in front of their dates
wink