A Full, Full Friday...

Another week has come and gone and its time for Kelly's Show Us Where You Live and for my regular Friday Favorites! This week we are showing Foyers/Entry Ways. Our home has an entry way, of sorts. This green piece is my favorite piece of furniture in my home. I got it at a garage sale for $50. Like I have admitted before, I am a bargain shopper!

This white shelf my dad made me. I "heart" it, too!

Next is a small display of family photos... every home HAS to have them!

Then you have some of my pewter candle sticks that were wedding presents and these pewter letters that spell HOPE. They are suppose to be Christmas decorations but I keep them out year round. They are from a former student when I was a teacher :)

And finally on my entry way you will find these three crosses just because I like them.

Now onto my FRIDAY FAVORITES. This week I have chosen to share this watercolor with you. My mom took this picture of the girls rideing Jasper and Will on Christmas day in 2005. She then did a watercolor painting of it. Currently it is hanging in the hallway of our home. I just LOVE it!! And finally to make this a full, full Friday... I need some advice on what you all do with your children's books. I am ready to clean the girls books out and reorganize them. They dont read many of these books any more and I am ready to get rid of these bookcases because they take up so much room and they are so dark. I am ready for suggestions! Remember money is an option so buying new beautiful, smaller bookcases is out of the question. Put your thinking caps on and share what works for you.

Happy Weekend!

A Kickin' and A Screamin'...

Cheer Camp is one of the HIGHLIGHTS of the summer every year for the girls. This summer was no different. The girls have been dancin', yellin', cheerin', and jumpin' all week! Today was their big performances. They all did such great jobs! I think they take after their momma :) Of course Will is still hoping that one of them will make the first girl quarterback for HHS!

Here is Miss Em and Morgan.

Abbey and London...

And Lainey and Sparky!

Happy Hump Day!

I Got Nothin'...

...But these flowers that I bought for $0.99 at H.E.B today on clearance while doing some grocery shopping. I am a bargain shopper kind of girl! They helped brighten my day and my kitchen counter...

Keep praying for me! I have been in a bit of a "life funk" and have been fighting a migraine. Things are looking up :)

Fun on the 4th...

Yesterday we headed to the lake with some friends for some family fun! The girls had so much fun. I am not sure they got out of the water all day except to eat. The moms and dad floated in the lake most of the day, too! We all got lots of sun :) We all floated on tubes, took turns on the boat, jet ski, and tube and played games and just sat around and visited. It was a great 4th of July!

Here are the girls soaking up the sun... Sydney, Elizabeth, Abbey, and Emiley.

Lainey posing for a picture by the sandbox.

Abbey and Sydney even took time to play in the sand.

Miss Campbell is too cute. She was too busy to look at the camera.

I had to get this picture of Miss Em. and her swimsuit rearend. I have a picture of me in a red and blue swimsuit about this same age from this same angle :) I think it may even be on the 4th of July. Emiley and I have the same body shape! (Poor baby!) What a sweet picture of Emiley and Campbell...

We all enjoyed the flag ceremony. It made us remember why we celebrate the 4th! What a great tradition!

We had a pretty uneventful day at the lake until it was almost time for the fireworks. The kids were taking a few last turns on the jetski. Lainey was trying to get from the tube to the jetski and missed the step and hit her chin right on the edge of the jetski. She got a pretty good cut on her chin. Luckily we had a doctor, a PA, and a nurse with us at the lake. If we had had some stitches we would have stitched her up right there but we didnt so we had to drive an hour back to town and miss the fireworks. Lainey was very tough but now has 5 stitches in her chin. She was glad that her BFF's daddy was working this weekend and could give her the stitches! It was a 4th we will never forget! And she will have a scar to remember it by!

My, Oh My...

My, Oh My... It's another Friday which means its time for Kelly's Show us Where you Live and my Friday Favorites. This Friday its Time for Front Yards and Garages. This is the new and improved front of our house. Thanks to my hubby who took down a huge tree in our front yard a year or so ago we now have a yard with grass!

And this is all you get to see of my garage :) Since we are in the middle of house remodeling, our garage is pretty full of stuff from the sunroom and other areas of the house. Maybe I will share with you at a late date...

These are other areas of our front yard/pasture. Here are the girls swing set and hammicks.

Our drive and the bird feeders... I love our place.

Some of my plants on my front porch.

Now for my Friday Favorites... I have had this cross hanging on my front porch for a long time. It use to be off-white. I just painted it black and now I LOVE it even more!

These chairs are also on my front porch. I think my mom got them at a garage sale a long time ago. They use to sit all rusted on my porch. I covered them with some white spray paint and now they look great holding my potted plants!

Happy Weekend!

Happy Birthday Day, Lainey Girl!

Happy Birthday Day, My Sweet Lainey Girl! I cant believe that eight years ago we were blessed with you! You have brought us so much joy. There is never a dull moment with you. You know exactly who you are and you not afraid to be "an individual YOU!" Keep Smiling... I love you with all my heart, Momma :)

To read so much more about Miss Lainey you can go here...
http://haleshousehold.blogspot.com/2008/07/happy-birthday-lainey-elizabeth.html

Honesty...

Honesty... What a small word with huge meaning.

Let me be honest and say I love my home make-over.
Before: After: And this is just the outside!

I also have so much more to be honest about... I have been really struggling lately. If you dont believe me, just ask the 'ole hubs. He can testify to it :) So this post I am just going to let the honesty flow. If you dont want to read it STOP now. It is all from my heart. Mainly to vent. Not for you to feel sorry for me, but to get it all off of my chest.

I know most of the people who read my blog are women. I know most women would agree that most of the time we keep things bottled up inside until we feel like we are going to explode. I feel like now is one of those times, where all those little things are making me crazy. Remember this is just pure honesty here.

I am ready for a job, but there are no jobs available in this town for which I have a degree. I am ready to purchase some new furniture. Will and I are lucky in that we have only had to buy three pieces of furniture our entire 12 year marriage, but I am ready for things to match. I know it is just me being materialistic, but hey, it is me I am finally being honest. If I had a job then I could help pay for some new furniture :) I would also love a "leave it to beaver" home. Hubby kisses the wife "good morning" and "good evening", everyone is calm, evening meals together... again just honest. I am ready for order, organization, peace, and I am working towards it. I want my girls to get along. I think some days they play paper, rock, scissors to see whose day it is to be the "bad" girl. Just being honest here! Some days I want to run away from it all... the laundry, the dishes, making the beds, the screaming kids, the cats with fleas... I am sure you know the feeling... just being honest :)

Life has been crazy. I know that are such times as this. The Bible talks about it.

I am praying daily for peace. I am eating chocolate and have started drinking cokes from Sonic again, in fact, I just pulled the brownies out of the oven. :) I am beginning quiet time again. The Lord will supply what I need. I ask that you pray for my peace. I will also pray for you and your peace as a mother and woman, as well, because even though you may not admit it at the time, I know you have been where I am at currently. Pray for my peace and for honesty!

I love you, mommas!

"Create in me a clean heart, oh God. And renew a right spirit within me. "