something to be thankful for...

(((i am really enjoying these "thankful thursday" list. i go, go, go, rush from here to there every week so i don't always think of all the things to be thankful for until thursday. sad, i know.)))

here goes:

*support money is coming in - so thankful for all the families who pledge to support us monthly thru money & their prayers.

*for jordan - a college student who is helping chad more than i could ever do. it really is a load off his shoulders.

*for a girls night out i had tuesday night. the girls were college seniors, so i was about ten years older than them. o'well - i still had a blast!!! it just made me realize that i have missed not having some close girlfriends & started praying for some great ones in tulsa.

*for the storms. i know that sounds weird because when i'm there i hate it, i am upset & just can't understand, but i know that God is with us, our family, our future He is holding in His hands.

*for kaden's energy & excitement on the soccer field. he scored a goal last saturday & was beyond thrilled. his face was priceless!!!

*for all the ice cream i have enjoyed this week... so yummy! i need to work out now & will... once i move to tulsa (((wink wink)))

*that brock is starting to tell me he needs to go to the bathroom. maybe he will potty train himself, brillant child of mine. (((ha ha)))

*yesterday it a rained, the boys slept in & so we made it a pj's day. it was so what i needed!

(((we all have something to be thankful so take a little time to think about your's)))

what's your answer...

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i found this on rachel's blog & wanted to play along this week. its a fun way to find out a little about the people who read your blog. 

1. excluding shampoo and conditioner, how many products do you use on your hair?

2. excluding the Bible, what is your all-time favorite book?

3. is there a household chore you actually enjoy? if not, what is the one you mind doing the least?

4. do you scrapbook? digital, paper, or both?

5. do you use a reader for the blogs you read? which one?

my answers:

1. 3 {gel while my hair is wet, a pomade after & then hairspray}

2. i don't have an all time favorite book. i use to read all the time - not so much anymore, but when i do find the time to read i like books on parenting & marriage.

3. i don't mind doing laundry - its got to get done by someone so you have clean clothes to wear. what i hate to do is sweep & unload the dishwasher.

4. i use to scrapbook & then baby boy #2 came around & i ran out of time... and energy! i now do photo books from shutterfly. i do one a year for each of the boys.

5. i just use my scroll on the left side of my blog to read my friends blog. is their an easier way... please tell!!!

now, it your turn!

look yummy???

tonight at baskin robbins you can get one of these for .31 cent

5pm to 10 pm only!

yea baby! that is what i'm talking about!!!

there is one across the street from our church so we will be heading over there after youth... hope you have one near you too :)

today is going to be a great day!

worth trying...

the second & fourth
or maybe its the first & third -
either way, every other sunday night we have small groups at our house {well, not at "our" house anymore... tear}

these two or so hours every other week is a time that chad & i look forward to. {the boys as well!} we have the ninth & tenth graders that we are with & we have a blast!

they come with a hungry stomach but cooking is something i have never been good at. i try & try but its just not going to happen. i wish i could give up & just eat out for the rest of my life... that would be the bomb.dot.com!!! ha

i say all that because this group of students are so easy to please. they would be happy with bagel bites every week. i do try to change things up but they are a little disappointed if i don't pull a tray full of them out of the oven. ha

also, they are BIG into trying new things, wierd flavors. so every time we meet i buy something new for us all to try.

this week we tried two new things:

they both were a hit!
so good!
so yummy!

i bought the vanilla fun stix's... it tasted like a vanilla wafers with just the perfect amount of icing on the inside. i ate so many that night... we will be buying more or maybe that's a bad idea. you should try them though!

and the chips... a crunchy version of funneons!

what about you... have you found something new that you think is worth trying???

***overwhelmed***

since chad and i our decision to move to tulsa to be apart of the church plant our life has been crazy. but every moment i still know that God is telling us to do this. when we got married {eight years this september} we never thought we would take such an adventure but through learning, growing, & TRUSTING we know God has a different & better plan for our life, for our family.

everything has been falling into place... {selling our house in 3 days & for more than we asked... getting money back from different things that we didn't know about or just didn't remember... raising support is going well... and i could list more... God is so good!} but through all of this its been tiring, esp for chad who seems like he is working two full time jobs... youth pastor & church planter. this past weekend was the hardest we have faced yet, since we began this journey.

we went to tulsa this past weekend to find our "new" home. we don't know the area or the schools very well so we just started driving around. our target area of people that we want to love & reach is a big triangle in tulsa. inside that triangle are ghetto schools, not so nice apartments & then really expensive homes & privates schools.

feeling overwhelmed seats in now!

we meet up with some dear friends that live near there & they asked us about where kaden will go to school. we said tulsa schools. and they advised us just the opposite.

so we are torn & more feelings of overwhelming feels us very fast. we want to be missional, to live there, to be the church to those people but at the same time i want kaden to get a good education and not learn horrible habits everyday while around those kids at school. maybe i am being a sheltered mom little too much but i feel its my job to protect him as long as i can.

the next day, we drove to all kind of apartments. since we don't know the area we don't want to buy right away. we were thinking apartments... swimming pool... fitness room... no yard to cut!!! but every person we talked to told us the same thing - "don't go to tulsa schools, jenks, union, broken arrow is your best place to go to school"

the boys went with us... not such a good idea! they did ok the first two places we looked at & then it was all downhill from there... and we were going downhill fast!!!

towards the end of our LONG day brock said from his car seat, "i want to go home" and kaden said to him, "we don't have a home, remember we sold it". my heart was filled with sadness & tears filled my eyes. our home - the only "home" they have known is just a memory now.

i felt very overwhelmed at this point. what is God thinking, asking us to move, relocate our boys from "home sweet home"???

***since being home from our weekend up to tulsa we have talked to more people that gave us the same advice. since they all are saying the same things about the schools we are going to try to find a rent home in jenks school district. we did find some nice apartments but still very tiny. we would be on top of each other at all times. we know that its a great time to buy right now but we don't want to rush into buying just yet. we want to live there at least a year, get to really know the area before we settle down.

so i end with asking you to please pray for us. this is huge & like the title says... we are feeling overwhelmed about all the decisions that effect our future that need to be made now. all the prayers are greatly appreciated!

thankful thursday...

so much to be thankful for...

{even though i still can't post picturs or get the THANKFUL THURSDAY logo from my computer...}

*for the WARM weather... its been over 80 degrees everyday this week

{i'm loving it!}

*that tomorrow is FRIDAY... its been a long week & i'm ready for a FUN weekend

*for my boys who make me smile BIG & laugh HARD every single day

{i need to tell them MORE that i am thankful for them}

*we found out we are getting {extra} money back from our house taxes

{like that a whole lot!!!}

*that my boys still feel close & love my parents even though they have never lived near them. thanks mom & dad for making such a GREAT effort to! and for skype that we just got... we have got to see them EVERYnight

*the move to mamaw & papaw's house really messed up the boys sleep schedule up. not anymore... they are both sleeping sounding all night again... & so am i!!!

*for the easter candy {chocolate} that the boys have forgotten about & now i am enjoying {this may turn into a bad problem & me having to start exercising}

*for blogging & blogging friends - i really do enjoy writing & knowing that people read what i write! also, the things i read is encouraging & uplifting, challenging & makes me laugh. i have some real friends in you all - thank you!

happy thursday!

chart it...

i am a list maker. 

i think i have said {written} it a time or two that i get a {high} i mean a thrill for marking things off my to-do list.

well, yesterday i came across an awesome site - goal for it

they have tons of charts {goals} for you, the family & kids already created or you can make up your own. super cute colors & designs!

i have saved it as a favorite & when we are moved, settled & have a routine again i will be printing {alot} of these babies out!!!

go check it out... i know you will like it!

today is EARTH DAY... we are going to the disney store after school. if you bring in 3 plastic bottles they give you something free. and you all know i'm all about FREE stuff!!! :)

tag... you're it!!!

i was tagged by the o' so cute jennifer at love, laughter & lyrics. if you have never been to her blog... its a must! she is a mom of two super cute kids & funny... every post will make you laugh!

8 things i'm looking forward to:
1 - this week... warm weather EVERYDAY!
2 - moving to tulsa... having our own place again!
3 - kaden going to kindergarten all day
4 - family vacation this summer
5 - my hair being long... my hair grows sooo slow so i may be old when that times comes but i will have long hair again before i die! ha
6 - brock being potty trained
7 - running again... its in my near future... i just know it, i mean i NEED IT!
8 - going to a fashion show... one of the girls in the youth group is in it next week!

8 things i did yesterday:
1 - unloaded the dishwasher
2 - dressed myself & the boys
3 - cooked breakfast & lunch for me & the boys
4 - took kaden to school / picked him up
5 - text a few people
6 - on the computer way too long... blogging... looking for a place to live
7 - actually got to take a nap... this NEVER happens
8 - we talked to my parents on skype... anybody ever done this? so fun for the boys to actually get to see grammy & pops, not just hear their voice!
{ i know i live a very boring life!!!}

8 things i wish i could do:
1 - keep a clean house
2 - draw a straight line - world's worst drawer right here!
3 - sing really good... like belt out some high notes good!
4 - make everyday a day at the beach... relaxing, swimming, getting a tan
5 - get paid for being on the internet... that would be the best job EVER!!!
6 - not get nervous talking in front of people
7 - fly everywhere instead of taking the car... my boys ARE NOT good travelers
8 - cure chad of ALL his allergies

8 shows i enjoy:
1 - csi: miami
2 - what not to wear
3 - jon & kate plus eight... i watch this & realize i have it made!!!
4 - anything on HGTV
5 - friends
6 - the view... i watch it because i like elizabeth & feel sorry for her because she gets ganged up on most days
7 - dateline
** that's about all i watch... if the question was "what do i hear all day"... elmo / dora / diego / thomas the train / curious george / word girl / authur / clifford

8 friends that i pass this on to...
stephanie
sarah
rachel
http://naturallycaffeinatedfamily.blogspot.com/
becky
amber
audrey
melinda



*

ruthless trust...

{reviving our trust in the one worth trusting}

chad preached in both services in the am yesterday.

i was not the good wife who made it to the 8:30am services to hear him preach. no way - no possible way for me to have myself dressed, the boys dressed & be in a good mood! its hard enough most sunday's getting there cheerfully at 9:30. anybody know what i'm talking about?!?!

back to his sermon... really good stuff... two pages of notes i took...

*most of us don't trust the Lord like we should because its risky, its scared, its the unknown. most of us like to plan things out ourselves, to be organized, & everything thought out, leaving no details unanswered.

*John 14:1 - TRUST HIM

*when you TRUST HIM you are in His WILL

*II timothy 1:12

*the more you TRUST - the more you GROW. the more you GROW - the more you TRUST.

* TRUST = discipleship

*TRUST is blind faith

*it's all about Him. the more you know Him, the less scary it is. and the more willing you are to TRUST HIM.

*the challenge is to go to the unknown! TRUST a little more, let God prove how awesome HE IS!!!

* another story to read about God being faithful if we TRUST is gideon in judges 6&7

chad was passionate & spoke from his heart. trusting God is what we are totally doing right now. when we said "yes, we will be apart of the church plant in tulsa." since we have been married, our decision making has been pretty easy. no huge decisions, no yes/no choices to make, everything usually fell right into place.

leaving the church where we have been youth pastor's for 5 years, moving our boys, no salary, one or both of us maybe having to get a job, all of chad's family here, leaving friends... but we knew/know that God was telling us to go. its the scariest decision we have ever had to make as a couple, for our family.

but as soon as we said "yes" God beginning to show us that He is faithful & that by TRUSTING HIM we will be alright. every detail He will work out & we will be just fine if we keep TRUSTING HIM. and that is just what we plan on doing!

full of it...

my camera... its full of PICTURES

from our empty house {tear},

the FULL storage building, 

spring break camp,

100,000 easter egg outreach our church did, 

easter sunday, 

warm days at the park, 

soccer games,

the boys & their cousins,

backyard fun...

but my printer all of a sudden (well really since mid march) will not reading my card.

not sure what is going on... i just want it fixed!!!

aahhhh, i hate when things don't work! and chad is a little too busy to figure it out... or atleast today he is.

so i'm frustrated, mad, confused to why the dumb thing is not reading my memory stick. 

doesn't it know that i have a blog & i NEED to post pictures! 

i think it cares less. haha

welcome to saturday... its going to be a GREAT day!

  

in my dreams...

last night i was on the bachelorette... in my dreams!

the "he" was chad!!!

i was one of two girls left that he had to choice between, to receive the pretty engagement ring, to marry, have two kids, one dog & white picket fence. you know... to live happy ever after with.

the other girl was drop dead gorgeous. i never saw her but i image she was... aren't they all on the show?!?!

it was the night before he had to make the big decision. i got to spend some one-on-one time with him. he was feeding me all the right lines making me believe that I WAS THE ONE!!! i was going to be the lucky girl he picked.

you know how in the "real" show the girls always look pretty with the latest fashion on, make-up perfect, hair just right. well not me... i was wearing black sweatpants that were too shorts and my hair in a side ponytail.

why? i'm not sure but its funny. {i really think i was wearing them because chad told me just this week that he doesn't like a pair of my sweatpants!!!}

back to my dream... i never found out if i was "the" girl because i got loudly awaken by a scream, "MOM!" "mom, come here!"

brock was having a bad dream.

of course i went in there, but i was mad! {haha}

i wanted so badly to go back to sleep & finish my dream.

i know chad picked me in real life {smile} i just wanted to see if he would pick me all over again in my dream while wearing sweatpants that were way too short!!!

excuses...

lately, when i ask b to start picking up toys. he responds: "my ankle hurts."

when i ask him to take something to his room: "my elbow hurt."

yesterday, i told him to go tell his brother that its time to get ready for church: "my tongue hurts"

i laugh each time because he is full of it! those things don't hurt.

he is just trying to get out of doing something he doesn't want to do.

he just hasn't learned yet that i am smarter than him. {haha}

but where or where did he learn this from?!?!?

midnight hours...

back during my college years {8 years since i've been out} it was no problem for me to stay up till midnight or later every single night.

i remember thinking that people who went to bed early had no life! {haha} how shallow of me.

times have {sure} changed.

last night chad & i stayed up finishing our support letters to send out today for our wonderful new adventure starting in june.

i was {past} ready to be asleep, dreaming sweet dreams so i was no talk - all business!

we got them finished at midnight & i slept solid/strong/good until 7:30 this am.

no little ones waking me up.

no alarm clock.

i woke up in a good mood.

now in a even better mood when i watched the weather & saw high 70's. {that is something to get excited about!!}

happy wednesday!

lately...

i haven't shared any of the good deals that i have found in awhile & boy have i gotten some!!!

yesterday at cvs:
{2} softsoap body butter scrub
{3} colgate 360 toothbrush
{1} colgate toothpaste
{2} pantene 2-n-1 shampoo/conditioner
{1} pantene gel
{4} excedrin express gels
total: 80{cents}

one day last week at target:
{2} dry idea deodorant - FREE
{3} pledge multi surface - 33{cents} a piece
{4} complete contact solution - FREE

walgreens:
{1} schick quattro razor {3 pack}
{1} schick xtreme3 razor {4 pack}
total: less than 2 {bucks}!!!

new york & company:
last week there was a coupon for $15 off anything - only on friday
i found a thin purple sweater that was 50% & minus the $15 coupon i got it for $2.83!!!

wal-mart:
{2} salad dressing - .08 {cents} a piece

have you made/found any good deals lately that you want to share?

did you know???

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

just wondering...

many of you have a "signature" at the bottom of each of your post... just wondering how you do that???

also, many of you have your email address on the right or left sidebar... how do you do that???

still trying to figure things out in the blogging world & need your help so my page can be cool like yours :)

thanks a million & happy Easter!!!

check...

moved out - check

house spotless {thanks to my mom!} - check

everything in our home moved into a storage building - check

settled into the in-laws - {nope!}

really tired but have to keep going - check

easter outfits bought - check

easter baskets filled - {nope}... maybe tonight

the laundry basket overflowing {x3} - check

missed my favorite show {csi:miami} because of college basketball - check

the little one threw a rock hitting k {on accident... i think} - blood EVERYWHERE - check

closed on our house - check

made $$$ on the house {yea!} - check

want to buy a new wardrobe - {nope!} not going to happen, but i can dream!!!

my boys don't listen as well when the grandparents are around - check

our life is a {little} crazy right now but i keep telling myself... 2 months! - check

something for us all...

chad got home around 7 last night & i was more than THRILLED for him to be back home.{single parenting is over!}

so were the boys!

k said several times, "we should all sleep in your room to celebrate you home"

{smart & tricky boy}

we had dinner & then we all crashed but not before chad {surprised} us with some gifts.

the boys got a few small things he had gotten at the conferences he was at... {a flashlight, blue bracelet, something to color on}

me - well, i got this...
he is just {TOO} kind! i had mentioned {maybe} a couple of times that i wanted an across the shoulder purse for convenience when shopping.

i have taught him well, so don't worry - no full price for this cute thang! he found an outlet :)

{HAPPY} friday & weekend to you all.

we move out today & tomorrow... funfun!!!

* that chad will be home tonight {yea!}... i won't be a single parent packing the house by myself any more!

* that my mom is coming in the morning to help me clean the house once all the furniture is moved out. she is {truly} the best!

* that i have wonderful in-laws that are letting us stay with them for two months before our move to tulsa.

* that my boys have played together {very} well this week considering they only had a few cars & lego blocks to play with.

* our roof was replaced 100% by our insurance.

* i moved some clothes yesterday... we have alot & THAT i am thankful for.

* for chad's encouraging words & texts during a situation this week.

this is how i feel today...

just a BIG mess!!!