Toot Your Horn Tuesday - New friends are a special gift

It's time again to toot our horns!

In fact, I'll toot two horns this time. Mimi, from He & Me +3, came to my house for a visit! How cool is that? She lives in Michigan, but was here in Virginia on vacation. I understand she was to have a meeting with some other bloggers in North Carolina too.

We had a great visit! My oldest son was working, but the rest of my kids, plus her 3 were all under the same roof. While the kids jumped on the trampoline and bowled on the Wii, Mimi and I just chatted away. What a wonderful lady she is. Her smile just lit up my living room. We only visited for a couple of hours, and of course we were interrupted by all those active kiddos, but boy did we hit a lot of topics. Family, blogging, weight loss, faith, decorating, health issues and more. She has family here in Virginia, so I look forward to seeing her again. And next time, we'll get a pedicure together! (ok Mimi?)

This was my first experience meeting one of my blogging buddies in person. I'd love to meet a few more. So if you're ever in Virginia, Let Me Know!

And one more toot...
Vacation Bible School has begun. I'm teaching 2nd grade this year along with several other brave ladies. 2nd grade happens to be the largest group this week. I think there are about 16 kids. 3 more days left and let me tell you, it's quite tiring. But it's just as much a blessing for the adults as it is for the children.

Ok, I'm signing off. Hoping that many of you are ready to join in the fun and write a post about how special you are. Sometimes even the smallest task needs a little recognition. So write away! Whether you conquered a pile of laundry or ran a marathon, let's hear about it!

Include the cute little TYHT button on the left side bar in your post and then sign Mister Linky. And most importantly, Cheer each other on!!

Doesn't look like I'll be writing much of a post for Monday. I'm EXHAUSTED!
Vacation Bible School started tonight. It was a blast. Wish we had it in the morning though. I'm much more with it in the morning.

Really the only reason I'm even taking the time to write right now is because I wanted to announce that Glynis went poop in the potty.

Aren't you just jumping for joy?! I know...sorry...I'm a Mom of a toddler. This is a real highlight for me.

I will be writing more interesting things on Tuesday. For one, my great blogging friend, Mimi, came for a visit! I'll post a picture and write the rest of my "toots" then. That's right, I'm looking forward to everyone joining in for another week of Toot Your Horn Tuesday. Make sure you're here!

G'day Mates! (VBS has an Australian theme)

Photostory Friday - Safety First

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Here's what you do with those independent teens and toddlers who think they don't need Mommy anymore...

Bubblewrap!

A verse for the day

A friend of mine posted this verse on Facebook today and I feel compelled to share it.

Colossians 3:23

Work willingly at whatever you do,

as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.

I really liked the New Living Translation. When I informed my kids of all the chores that they will be doing this morning, we wrote this up on our chalkboard wall in the kitchen. We read it out loud and pondered it for just a moment.

It really lifted their spirits and mine as well. I'm sure we'll have our chores done in no time and we'll be able to enjoy the rest of this glorious God given summer day!

This is also very timely for my oldest son today. He headed out this morning to do some construction type work for a friend. (And yes, it's a paid job, alleluia!!) There he goes....

Nothing to report

I'm not sure why I even opened my laptop just now. There's absolutely nothing to report. It's been a dull day so far. I tried my best to get moving early, but it was 10:30am before I got out the door to run errands and hit the pool. It's gotten soooo difficult to get ready for an outing with a toddler. A friend of mine once compared it to herding kittens. As I'm dressing or packing the toddler's bag, she is usually somewhere in the next room making a big mess. AAHH!!!

So anyway, we did get out of the house. Glynis is in need of a floatation device. Does anyone have any recommendations? We've bought her arm floats and today I got her a little shirt type thing, but neither can keep her head out of water. And she just won't stay in last year's float. I'm thinking that the best option is a full life jacket for toddlers, but I can't find one!! Went to several stores already.

So back to my null report. We did make it to the pool, but the clouds covered the sun and we could only bare about 45 minutes before the kids started shivering. Of course, my 11 year old noticed that I wasn't shivering and noted that it must be because I've got "plenty of meat on my bones" to keep me warm.

My two teenagers have gone to the beach with friends today. Have I told you guys how much fun teenagers are? I think I'm overdue for another teen parenting post. I'll get one started right away, but for now, here's my little rant...

When my oldest turned 17 years old the other week, he became a different person overnight. I kind of saw it coming, but now it is full blown. He doesn't want anything to do with me in public. It's like I'm the swine flu or something.

So here I am dealing with this little independent toddler and now this big independent teenager. They both think they don't need me!! I'm so happy to still have my in-between children. I can't take all the rejection. My in-between children still enjoy my company and are happy to let me do things for them. ;)

Ok, that's it for my Wednesday rambling. I don't even know why I wrote anything. This is just one of those therapy posts. It's better than banging my head on the wall, right?!!

Hope you have a great hump day!

Toot Your Horn Tuesday - Less of me

My biggest news of the week is that I am about 4 pounds lighter than I was last week!! The bad news is that I believe most of that weight has come off my already small upper "portion" as opposed to my overly large lower "portion." I realize that one week isn't much of an accomplishment and that 4 pounds can shift right back into place if I don't make more of a lifestyle change. But it sure does feel like a good start!
My husband and I decided to try the South Beach diet. Didn't buy a book, just got some info off the Internet and went with it. We are eating lean meat, lots of veggies and practically no carbs or sugar. Sounds rough, but the idea is to train ourselves to resist those sugar and carb cravings.
I'm also walking most every day and doing some simple exercises. It has helped tremendously that my husband and I are being supportive of each other and not critical. We're in this together. Did you hear that we are going to Hawaii this summer?! The countdown begins today. 40 days to go. I'd be sooooo happy if I could look like this again....

Dream on!! =)

Now it's your turn to Toot Your Horn. Have you written a post? Did you add the cute little button from the side bar? If so, then sign Mister Linky and post a comment below. Can't wait to hear your toot!

Toot Your Horn Tuesday Participants

1. Ace

2. Helga

3. Blessed2Serve

Powered by... Mister Linky's Magical Widgets.

Not Me Monday - Summer has begun

It's summer time and I'm raring to have some fun. The kids and I are going swimming again today. And with 4 kids around the house all day, I've got to be on my toes. I do not want them sitting in front of the tv all summer. Many activities planned. By the way, did you see this website? Participating AMF bowling alleys around the country are offering free bowling for kids. We signed up and have already gone 2 times. Check it out!

Since I'm so busy, I've got another short Not Me List. MckMama, the host of this carnival, is still dealing with a sick baby. Not sure whether she will be playing along today or not, but either way, go check on her blog to get an update on Stellan. He was just in the hospital again this past week.

Here goes:
I did not start yet another diet this past week. You've all watched me, you know how I've failed miserably trying to get this excess 10lbs. off. But come back tomorrow and I'll go into more details about that.

The other day while I was preparing to marinate some steaks, I did not put them in a container and then proceed to shake that container without securing the lid properly. Can you picture that? There are no pictures, because this time the mess was all over ME and I only take pictures of other's messes.

I did not slack off on the potty training the last couple of days. Glynis has actually made more progress so why would I slack off?! She's urinated in the toilet 2 times now!! That's a start I figure.

I did not add more advertisements to my blog. This blog is for your enjoyment and profiting from that on my part, would be so self-serving, wouldn't it? Did you notice that I have 4 children of various ages and that I'm a stay at home mom? That we're a one income family? That next year my oldest son will be graduating high school and entering college? That my youngest isn't even 2 yet and I have many many more years of child rearing ahead of me? Did you notice that I'm going to be 40 this summer which makes me OLD? And can't we all use a little extra cash?! I promise it won't be spent on Starbucks or massages!

So there you go. I'm so happy that you're here today for a visit! Make sure you visit again tomorrow when we share life's joyful moments and give ourselves a little credit. Tomorrow is Toot Your Horn Tuesday and I'm hoping you'll all play along. Click here for rules.

Double Triple Blessings to you today!

Photostory Friday - There's gonna be a party

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

There's gonna be a party potty!!
Been working on this for several days and we've gotten over the first hurdle.
Glynis finally urinated in the potty.
Party Potty On Baby!

Toot Your Horn Tuesday - A first for me

I'm so glad it's Tuesday. I'm starting to look forward to my little "me" break every week. A chance to give myself some well deserved credit for all the little (or big) things I've accomplished in my small world. You won't be accused of bragging here. What does God say? He knows our hearts. God wants us to be happy and I believe that he delights in our daily accomplishments no matter how small. So I'll share mine and you share yours!

I'm thrilled to say that my house stayed clean for a solid week! And as I sit here tonight, it is still looking pretty good. I just started reading a book called The Momnificent Life by Lori Radun. I plan to write more about it as I get through it, but I had skipped over to the chapter about time management and boy, were there some good motivators and tips there. I'm looking forward to becoming even more Momnificent!

If you read yesterday's post, you'll see that I have started potty training Glynis. Actually I have no idea what I'm doing. I mostly just spent the day cleaning up puddles on the floor. I guess I need a Pottyificent book too. teeheehee! But I'm determined to give it a few more days before I give up. Glynis is only 23 months old so I won't kill myself or turn her into a basket case trying to get it done.

The big thing that I'm proud about this week is that I spoke at my Grandfather's funeral last Tuesday. It's something I've never done before and I was scared out of my mind. In fact, I've never really spoken at all in front of a large group so this was pretty big for me. One of my blog friends said that public speaking isn't really that hard when you are very familiar with the topic and I guess she was right. I loved my Grandfather and once I was up there in front of my family, it just flowed out.

Well that's it for me. What outstanding accomplishment can you toot about? After you've written your post on your blog, sign up that link on Mister Linky and/or leave your toots as a comment below. Remember to use the cute little Tooty button from the sidebar in your post. I can't wait to read your toots! Let's stick together!

Monday musings and another birthday

2 out of my 3 boys jumped out of bed this morning, eager to get this week over with. The last day of school is Thursday. (It seems like the rest of the country's kids have already gotten out of school.) But then there is Carson. He has had trouble all year with getting up in the morning. His alarm will ring and ring and he won't even budge. After the alarm goes off, my husband will go speak with him, then his brother will try and lastly, I'll run into his room yelling..."Carson! you have to leave in 15 minutes!" He always makes it. =)

The sweet hostess of the Not Me Monday carnival is having a rough day with her son Stellan. Please say a prayer for her family. In the meantime, I've only got one "Not Me"

I most certainly did not have to pick up Glynis' poop off the floor on her first day of potty training. She only got out of bed one hour ago and she had been on the toilet just 10 minutes earlier! I know we can do better than that! Wish us luck and I'll keep you posted as the day goes on. Watch my twitter.

Ok, the real news for the day is that it is

June 15th!!

Yep, another birthday! My cutie for a husband is turning 42. Born in 1967, he's a child of the 80s. Here's a few pics of him through the years.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTOPHER!

Don't forget to toot your horn tomorrow! Come by my blog every Tuesday for a big pat on the back!

Photostory Friday - Music in his blood

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Happy 17th Birthday Cole

I love you!

Toot Your Horn Tuesday - Husbandless

It's time to brag again...

My husband left yesterday for some training in another state. Oh how I miss him!! Tomorrow is my Grandfather's funeral and guess where everyone is gathering afterwards? You got it, my house! And let me tell you, my house was not ready for a gathering.
But as of tonight 11:36pm, EVERYTHING IS READY! I must give some credit to my children too. They've been so helpful. Even though Carson woke up feeling sick and Chandler woke up with a mysterious rash on his torso. All is well with them now.

I opted to order platters of sandwiches. I'm sure glad that I had nothing to cook. Veggies, fruit, potato salad, crackers and dip. Sounds good to me! I'm grateful for Costco which is just down the street.

I'd also like to mention that I will be speaking at the funeral. This will be a first for me. I'm normally very uncomfortable speaking in front of a group, so pray that God will steady my knocking knees and get me through it quickly.

That's all I have time for tonight. Must get sleep!!! Go ahead and sign Mister Linky if you've written a TYHT post. Click here to see the original post w/ rules. And toot away in the comment section too. Can't wait to hear from all of you.
Blessings,

Not Me Monday - A little girl's memories

In case you didn't read my last post, my Grandfather died last week. He was 95 years old! Tomorrow is his funeral and I'm running rampant trying to clean my house to accommodate family for a gathering afterwards. So this will have to be quick.
As a little girl, Grandpa Al was my protector. He was tall and lean and extremely smart! I'm dedicating this Not Me Monday post to my memories of Grandpa Al.

As a little girl, I did not spend hours worrying over the ghost that lived in my Grandparents basement. Little kids don't believe in such things. But whether I did or not, my Grandpa Al came up with a great scheme to rid the house of that pesky ghost. He grabbed it by the throat and threw it right down the toilet and with one *FLUSH* that little girl never feared ghosts again!

Also as a little girl, I did not stand guard of a fig tree! What a preposterous thing to do! Can you picture a little blond headed 7 year old running around a fig tree shoeing all the birds away? I'm guessing the only reason that a little girl might do that was to please her Grandfather who always complained of the birds eating his figs.

And have you heard the story of Brer Rabbit? Well, I did not beg my Grandpa to tell it to me more than 5 hundred times over the years. Wouldn't a Grandfather get tired of telling it over and over again? I suppose he loved me. =)

Drop by MckMama's site to read more Not Me's. And come by here tomorrow for another Toot Your Horn Tuesday!

Photostory Friday - Grandpa Al

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Alfred West Shelton Jr.

My Grandfather passed away last night.
He was weary and it was time to go home.

He's in heaven now,
whistling with my Grandma Peggy.

Toot Your Horn Tuesday - Monday woes are Tuesday's pros

It's time again to step up into the lime light. Where did you shine? Did you get your to-do list completed? Did you make something fabulous in the kitchen? Did you step on the scale and see the needle drop? Please tell!!!

Did you read my Not Me's from yesterday? No? Good, then continue reading...

Here's what I have to Toot about:

Our neighbors decided the day before that they would host a Memorial Day party. I was asked to bring a dessert. With such little time, I came up with the ingenious idea to buy a simple lemon bundt cake from the market along with a quart of strawberries. I slid that yummy cake onto my own platter, sliced up those fresh strawberries and lined them around the cake and even filled the middle. Voila! A beautiful tasty dessert and every last bite was eaten!

And while at this party, everyone was insisting that I let my adorable little toddler get into the pool even though we didn't come prepared to swim. How could I let all of those Glynis fans down? They really enjoyed watching Glynis giggle and squirm in the frigid water. Great entertainment for all.

Normally on Wednesdays I shoot up to my son's school and volunteer in his classroom, but being that school is almost over and there is less to do, I decided to go visit my husband's new office. Glynis and I even brought him a plant to sit in his big sunlit window. It really made his day.

And I finally made it up into the attic to retrieve the boxes and boxes of baby clothes that Glynis has outgrown. I took a few pictures and posted them on Craigslist. I finally got my first call this evening. I'm hoping to make a few dollars and then donate the rest of the lot to a friend's new grand daughter and to the local children's hopital thrift store. It'll be really nice to have that clutter out of the house.

Now it's your turn. Write your Tootie post and include the smashingly cute button from over on my side bar. Do you know how to do that? Just copy the code beneath and paste it right into your post. Easy Breezy. Then come back here to leave your link using Mister Linky. And don't forget to chirp away in my comment section below. That makes it way more fun!
Can't wait to listen and learn all about how wonderful you are. I'm a fan of YOU and God loves you too! (I know, that's kind of corny...sorry)
**ONCE AGAIN, MISTER LINKY IS HAVING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTY. IT MAY OR MAY NOT APPEAR FOR YOU, BUT THEY'RE WORKING ON THE ISSUES. IF IT IS NOT WORKING, JUST LEAVE A COMMENT SO WE'LL KNOW WHERE TO FIND YOUR TOOTIE POST**