Cute Pics

I am a little delayed with some pictures on here, so I thought I would download today since I am still not feeling all that great. I actually plan to head to the doctor tomorrow just to make sure everything is okay. Here are some pictures from our trip to Wilderness at the Smokies, easter eggs, and I had to add one of David all dressed up like a cowboy:)

Here are the boys coloring easter eggs at my parents house. Kyle really got into doing it and David did also which kind of surprised me. It was a little nerve-wracking because David is Mr. Independent and wanted no help, but you can see how pale my parents' house is!! There was white carpet underneath them!

Here is David doing the backstroke! He loved the water so much that we had to bribe him to get him out to take a break:)

Last weekend at Wilderness at the Smokies. Kyle really enjoyed the surfing and got brave enough to get up on his knees:) He loved it!

I cannot believe how precious David looked for Wild West day at school. I never thought he would make it all day in those boots, but he was so proud of himself all "cowboyed up!" He loved it and stayed dressed up all day:)

Not as planned

Sometimes in life you have these great plans but then real life kicks in! This weekend was one of those times. Mike was in Roanoke teaching for Friday night and Saturday and I had big plans with the boys. Friday we were going to see Monsters Vs. Aliens after school and then Saturday morning we were going with friends to the huge Easter Egg hunt at Hungry Mother Park (one of our favorite hangouts).

Well, it did not quite work out that way. Friday afternoon after preschool I got very sick with dizziness and throwing up. I got totally afraid because Mike was already out of town, my doctor's office was already closed for the weekend, and the boys were due to be picked up from school soon.

I went through my help rolodex in my mind and called my friend Samantha to pick up my boys (God bless her) and then I called my Dad who drove an hour to come get us and then brought us back to their house. I had no idea what was wrong with me and I am feeling some better today. I was asleep last night well before eight p.m.

The boys have had fun here and thankfully GG and Pops' town was having a easter activity that the boys got to do this morning. They also got to dye easter eggs here which was fun for them. I will post pictures later:)

Be Real!

I am so thankful for my sweet friends that read my WHATEVER post and sent me an email asking me if I was okay because I sounded oh, a little edgy in that post. I will admit that I was a tad hormonal that day but frankly I just needed to vent my frustration at the little things that sometimes add up in a big fat way:)

Then I started thinking about that post and wondering if it was bad that my "edgy" side showed and then it smacked me that we should all let our edgy side show every once in a while.

I know that sounds a little radical, because we are all taught to put our best face forward and try to portray ourselves as having it all together. We are trained somehow to put on our smiles, wear our best clothes at all times, always speak sweetly, and borrowing a phrase from a deodorant commercial, "never let them see you sweat!"

That sounds perfectly and totally marvelous except:

Parenting young children is not exactly a neat walk in the park . My children are precious, BUT they can max out my patience in under two minutes. They have been noted to have said things that have embarrassed the snot out of me, they sometimes on occasions squabble and wrestle in public, and lets face it-parenting is not an exact science with an instruction manual.

Marriage is wonderful, BUT it is a relationship that requires constant attention, compromise, and compassion. Ummm, you know, sometimes I do not feel like putting someone else before my own needs and compromising. Sometimes I just want it my way which isn't always healthy for a marital relationship.

I love having a home, but with my swelling belly and small children under foot, it is not always as neat and organized as it could be.

What amazes me is that so many of us struggle with these issues, but we all try to walk around looking like we all have it together. I say lets be REAL and truly encourage each other in our parenting, marriage, walk with God, etc.. Someone was talking about my Mike to me the other day and she said "you know, Mike just seems so real!"

I have to admit I was a little jealous of that comment and decided to strive to be real as well. Mike chooses to drive around town in a little Honda Civic that he adores. He could afford a much fancier car/truck/or SUV with all the bells and whistles but that is not who he is. He has no desire to try to impress people and that is one of the things that I admire most about him. I tend to fall into the "what will people think" category way too often which translates into me not being as real as I could be.

I try so hard to be a great Mom, great wife, great teacher, and overall I try so hard NOT to embarrass Jesus as I walk on this Earth as a witness for him. Sometimes I hit the nail on the head, but unfortunately other times you might catch me being a tad judgmental, maybe even rolling my eyes at something, and not always encouraging the people around me the best that I could.

I have to admit that this blog started as frankly a way to showcase my precious children, tell funny stories about them, and overall just show the pretty side. Thankfully it has turned into something way bigger and hopefully through this blog you can see all sides of me and that this is a place where we can be REAL. Lets face it, this walk is a hard one, but blessedly we have Jesus to guide us, spouses to hold us up so we don't have to do it alone, friends to laugh with, and children whose sticky hands we can hold all along the way (hand holding is a great way to separate children to keep the wrestling at bay)!!!