Priorities....

So, today was the BIG game....Arkansas v. Alabama!  The spot to be at 2:30 this afternoon was in front of the television!!!  We, however, were on the soccer fields!  Autumn had soccer games today...yep...games, today was her double-header!  Her first game was 2:20 and her second game was at 3:15.  For a couple weeks we knew this was coming.  We made all of the preparations....got the DVR ready, wore our Hogs attire to the game, informed people NOT to call us, refused to check FB, or any site that would give us info.

Today at 2:20 we were on the soccer fields along with quite a few other Hog fans.  When the game started, I never even thought about the Hogs (okay...that isn't true, I thought about them occasionally, but usually only when someone tried to talk about the game).  Autumn scored 2 goals today.  I was such a proud mom!  They tied both of their games.  Their first game the final score was 3-3.  Their second game was scoreless.  It was awesome because my mom even got to see Autumn score her goals!!  Mark and I both agreed we LOVED being out at the fields today.

The truth is, I LOVE being out on the soccer fields.  I LOVE watching my girls play.  I am always so proud of them!  I LOVE being with my friends.  We are lucky enough to have some of the BEST kids on our team and some of their moms are some of my favorite people.  The weather was PERFECT today.  It was a GREAT afternoon!  Now, when we did get home, we watched the Hogs lose from start to finish, and were proud to cheer for the Hogs (when they gave us something to cheer about).  But, the highlight of my day occurred on the soccer fields....with my family and friends.  It was a GREAT day!

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend!

Complete Randomness.....

It is a cool and dreary Saturday morning and the truth is, I am glad.  It has been a busy week and the fact I don't feel the need to be outside enjoying the fresh air is okay with me (for the moment).  I am happy to be laying on the couch under a blanket thinking about the events of this past week.

Allie had her first soccer game this week.  It was a double-header.  In between the 2 games, she lost her first tooth.  We were so excited!  It had been loose for a while and we had been trying to get it....naturally, it came when it was time.  I was soooo excited for her and so glad I was there for it.  Autumn's first soccer game is today.  I can't wait to watch her play.  There is nothing more important to me than the things my girls are involved in.  I LOVE being there cheering them on!

Yesterday was a good day.  It started with a nice breakfast with Mark from Chick Fil A (you know I loved that), dinner at Larry's Pizza, and family movie night with Thor!!!  It was a great night to just "be."  As silly as it is, one of my favorite things about Larry's is the fact that the girls can go play games and Mark and I just talk...it's almost like  a mini date night.  :)  Thor was a good movie and we even enjoyed some hot chocolate during it.

On a sadder note, I seem to be knowing a lot of people who have been losing loved ones.  My heart has been hurting for all of them.  Last night a sweet 8 year old girl (that I have been following the story of) became the newest angel in heaven.  She had been battling cancer and her fight is now over.  When it comes to cancer, I hate saying someone lost their battle....it gives the cancer too much power in my opinion.  This girl, Morgan Anderson, was a fighter and she has touched more lives than she could ever realize.  I can imagine no greater pain as a mom than losing a child.  Yet, knowing the fight that kids can put up and the faith and strength they show, I can imagine no greater pride as a mom either than knowing your child fought the best they could.  Watching the Glen Rose school district come together has been inspiring.  It has also taken me back to my journey with Miryah.  The pain, the pride, the strength, the anger, the loss, the love.

I was reminded recently reminded by my friend, Jill (through her blog), that my first job is being a mom.  I take no greater pride in anything than my job as a mom.  I will cheer loudly at every soccer game and hold them as much as they will let me.  Though my girls will make me crazy, cause me stress, and have me wanting more sleep.....this is the life I have always wanted and never want to be without.

Have a wonderful weekend.  Hug the ones you love.  :)

Can we do this again, PLEASE?!?! :)

Let me start this blog by saying that I LOVE my girls.  I ADORE my girls.  I would do ANYTHING for my girls.  That being said, I have loved this weekend and my girls are with my mom.  Is that terrible to say? I don't think so.  There are few things I have realized this weekend,

1. I LOVE my husband.  I have realized how much I just enjoy being with him.  We have had a great time.  He went jean shopping with me (and convinced me to buy 2 pairs!!!), we watched football (Go HOGS!), we did our Wal-Mart shopping, we were just together...and I LOVED it.

This is not from this weekend, I just love this pic of us!  :)

2. I was tired.  I slept 12 hours last night and had taken a nap yesterday afternoon.  I knew I was worn down, lots of emotional things had ended recently, school had started, soccer has started, just normal crazy life...but I had no idea how tired I actually was!  Sleep was SOOOO needed!

3. I love food.  I always love food....but I ate whatever I wanted (or what Mark and I wanted) and didn't worry about making sure the girls were happy too.....or forcing them to eat what we may have been eating.  For some reason....I ate a LOT of food this weekend.

Mark and I have had time to ourselves before, we are blessed with people in our lives who are willing to take the girls whenever we need them to.  But, this weekend was different....we didn't have anything we NEEDED to do.  We were just at home.  It was soooo nice.  We still have the rest of tonight and some time in the morning......it has been perfect.  Thank you, Mom!  :)

         *********************************************************************

Just a couple of side notes...not sure what to call these, but things that have been on my mind that I just wanted to share...

1.  Do things that make you happy....buy things that make you happy....I'm not saying to go into debt...but be happy....this is your life and you should enjoy it.

2. So often it is easy to complain or be negative.  Think about the things you talk about during the day, are they positive or negative?  Try to find more positive things to talk about than negative.  Now, believe me I know we all have negative days, but I truly believe we can be happier people if we focus on the positive and don't dwell on the negative.

3. Take time to be with your spouse.  Kids are a blessing, but make sure you focus on the person you have chosen to spend the rest of your life with.....fall in love again and let them know how important they are to you.

I'm more in love with Mark today than when we first got married!  :)

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!  I am planning on it!

My Allie-bug :)

I think once you have a child and start considering having another one, you wonder if you can possibly love that child as much as the first.  I always knew I wanted 2 kids.  I had assumed I would have a girl and a boy (basically because that is how it was in my family) and Mark always assumed he would have 2 boys (because that is how it was in his family).  When we had Autumn I was soooo excited!!!  When pregnancy number 2 came along I was sooooo excited!!!  However, I wondered can I possibly love this new baby as much as I do my first, Autumn?

Allie's pregnancy was very similar to Autumn's.  I was sick A LOT!!!  I only threw up for the first 5 months with Allie though.  :)  I gained right about 24lbs. with her.  Her due date was September 17th.  I had just started a new job in August and figured I would be able to get through the first 4-6 weeks of school before I had her.  WRONG!!!  Allie was early.  I taught all day, that Friday.  I had lots of pains..but just assumed they were Braxton hicks contractions.  When I got home that night, Mark was going to take Autumn to Russellville to meet my mom so she could keep her for the weekend and Mark and I could have a final weekend alone.  Such a great IDEA!  By the time he got to Russellville I could barely stand up....the pain wasn't awful...but it was tough.  He didn't eat with my mom, like planned, when he dropped her off, but came straight back.  I told him I was fine and again assumed this was a false alarm.  In fact, I told him to stop and get dinner before coming home because I knew he was hungry. He got back from dropping Autumn off around 7:30 and we left for the hospital around 8...at that point my contractions were about 5 minutes apart, but I knew they would send me home, I was wrong.  Allie Paige was born at 10:51 that night.  I received my epidural around 9 and was pain free from that point on.  :)  Allie was 6lbs. 2oz. and was 19 inches long.  She was PERFECT and I immediately knew, I could definitely love a new baby as much as I did my first.

Allie has continued to bless us each day.  Her creativity, spunk, and determination keep us on our toes and in fits of laughter.  I am soooo blessed to have the sweet child in my life and I could not love her more.

My sweet girl celebrates her 6th birthday tomorrow (Sept. 2nd) and I only wish for her all of the happiness and love in the world.....she has definitely made my world a better place!

Have a wonderful night....:)

They aren't me.....

According to my memory, I was pretty much a perfect child.  Now, I had my faults (I'm sure), I just don't remember many!  :)  When it came to school, I remember loving it!  I wasn't THE most popular by any stretch, but I was never afraid to go up and try to make a new friend.  I don't remember getting into trouble (very often at least).  I remember having to stand in the hall in 2nd grade because I was trying to motion to a new student (who didn't speak ANY English) that she had to keep her head on her desk, and a teacher from a different classroom saw me and I got in trouble.  But, I was trying to help, right?

My girls aren't me.  They are both precious and I love them more than I can stand....but they aren't me.  I have to remember that sometimes.

Autumn is a LOT like me...chatty, friendly, chatty, a people-pleaser, chatty...:)  But, she is going to get into trouble.  She is, what I like to call, impulsive.  She isn't a bad kid...but she has to miss a recess occasionally, for something impulsive she does.  It makes me crazy.  We try to work on it...but I wasn't that way (at least I don't think I was) so it is hard for me to relate.  I think she should be perfect all the time....Hmmmmm....not going to happen.

Allie is my one who rarely gets in trouble in school (like pretty much never, I hate actually putting that because tomorrow she will probably get into trouble).  But, she is more of a loner.  Not in a bad way.  She told me tonight that she probably won't play with anyone tomorrow because she has played with kids all week and needs a break.  WHAT?  A BREAK from friends...at that age!  OMG!!!  She also said some kids won't ask her to play....broke my heart!  I told her to ask them...she said, "No, I'll wait on them."  WHAT?  I would have walked right up and asked kids to play.

It is hard watching my girls do things differently than I would.  I have to remember, they aren't me.  I love them more than anything and will always be here, supporting them...but they aren't me...and that is okay.  :)

Have a GREAT night!

Happy New (School) Year!!!!

Most people make New Year's Resolutions, usually I do too, but for me it seems to make sense to have resolutions for the upcoming school year.  I am actually kind of excited about the new school year.  I can't wait to hear what they girls think of their teachers and see how they do in school.  I am excited about meeting my new students and being a part of our new school!!  My life will, in some ways, be less stressful this school year and that makes me very happy.  So, here are a few of my New School Year Resolutions...with any luck...I will be successful!!!!

1. Spend more time with my family.  I adore them so much and they make me so happy, so I want more quality time with them.

2. Have more time with just my husband.  We need to make time for just the 2 of us....LOVE my girls, but sometimes it is nice to just go out with him...maybe dinner dates, going to movies (this would make him so happy...NOT RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES though!!), weekend getaways......hmmm...time to start planning!  :)

3. Do more with my friends.  I love being around them!  I love GNO's, cookouts, impromptu gatherings....so much fun!!!


Okay....a few "Healthy Living" goals.

1. Eat healthier...I don't diet, so I will try and eat better.  :)

2. Exercise more....I do pretty well during the week...about 3 times a week at the gym, but I want to try to get in at least 5 days of some type of exercise.

3. Run a couple 5K's.  First one I hope to run....Sept. 10th!!!

A few "Household" goals...

1. Keep the house cleaner.

2. Possibly do some work to the downstairs floors...I've been doing research and getting suggestions!

3. Keep the house cleaner......I am really going to try harder on this one!  :)


I think the 2011-2012 school year is going to be FANTASTIC!!

Have a GREAT rest of the weekend!

At the end.......

The 17 year old girl that I last blogged about, Miryah, died yesterday.  The last few days I witnessed her change for the worse.  She stopped speaking, stopped focusing, stopped using her hands.....she wasn't there......and that was hard to see.  To make matters worse, she lives in a section of town that lost electricity this week.  The high was 114 degrees on the day she lost electricity.  Mark and I took ice, fans that were battery operated, and flashlights.  A nice electrician (actually 2) came over and hooked a generator up for them and got their a/c working.  Prior to that her mom had packed ice around her to keep her cool.  Can you imagine?  Over 100 degrees outside and your packing your child with ice to keep them alive.

I knew yesterday that things were not good....I couldn't stop praying.  Mark, Autumn, and I had planned to go to a movie that afternoon so I had planned to stop by their home afterwards (it would have been around 8).  I don't have any regrets about being with my family at the movies when I got the call.....but I knew it was coming.

Another person and I arrived at Miryah's home shortly after 7:30.  She had passed away around 7.  I was there with her mom when she called the coroner and there when he arrived.  I was there to watch her body be taken, I was there as her mom started discussing memorial arrangements.  It was then I realized how much a part of Miryah's life I was.  I watched her boyfriend cry over her, I watched her grandmother be strong in talking to the many people who came in and out writing reports on her, carrying her body, asking questions, I watched her leave her home.  I did talk to her...told her how proud I was, and how loved she was.

Through the past 6 months so many people have listened to me and prayed for me and Miryah and her family.  I have witnessed people give their time, money, food, resources and prayer to help a family in need.

It was the right time for Miryah to go.  She was not the girl that I met in January.  She had dealt with cancer for over 2 years.  She fought hard.  She would have turned 18 on August 13th.  She told me last week that she would give anything to be back in school.  Then she turned away with tears in her eyes.  She has taught me so much.  It was only 6 months....but I LOVED this child.  I will miss her.