Kitchen make-over dreams

My kitchen is about to undergo a major transformation! The fun I am finding in dreaming about this room is giving me the energy I need today. I love this process!

This morning I went garage-saling for some inspiration. Here's what I found:

This piece will be painted with this technique. I'm thinking white with brown showing through. It will hang above the baker's rack. I found it for $4!
I can't wait to use this garden tray ($3) as a centerpiece on the kitchen table. Those two white frames were 10c a piece! I will use them in Lydie's big girl room (vintage prints??).
I bought a set of 6 of these vintage Easter postcards with trim and ribbon ($1 total). The are laquered, so nice and sturdy. I will hang them on the chairs at Easter with ribbon.
Makes me have a touch of Spring fever!!

I got 6 of these little lovelies for $1 (total), too. I thought I could use them at Lydie's birthday party in September. Pink candy inside, hung on the chairs, too. Don't think I could have made them for that price! (Excuse the ugly nails. I had to cut them all off when I tie-dyed without gloves. :) )

These two bird-inspired decorations will soon hang in the kitchen- $5 for both. This orange color is my fav!This little $30 table beckoned me. I bought it last week on sale in my favorite little shop. Orange is the new main accent color. Here are a few more orange things that are "old" that will stay in the kitchen. (The canisters (below) were my beautiful Grandmom's. I LOVE having items of her's and Nana's here and there around the house. I never imagined how many memories these little things hold!)

The paint color is a greyish green. I love it against the white trim. I am painting the table and chairs black. So black, greyish green and deep orange are the main colors. And also, lots of white!

I am hoping to have the boys help, again. I think we will get started tonight. By mid-week I hope to be able to share the new look of the kitchen!

The week's themes

...could be summed up with two words!

VBS: Crocodile Dock

The "ham" and the "cheese" leading in drama, music and dance

Monopoly


I taught Toot to play Monopoly this week. We played a game each day this week! He's hooked!

That's basically it! (Except maybe for those 50 other Mommy/Wife things that are done on a daily basis!)

Last edition of CSF

Camp Stinky Feet just ended. We had so much fun with Ross. Here are my favorite Ross quotes. He is the funniest kid I have ever known. (Not to mention sweet, well-mannered and enthusiastic. He was a DELIGHT!)

~“Come on words. Don’t play hide and seek with me.” (When he forgot what he was going to say.)

~“Come on Lydie, crawl down the steps backwards. That’s what all the girls are doing.” (When he went to get Lydie out of the crib.)

~“If Lydia Joy were a bug, she’d be a love bug.”

~“I know how 6 year olds are. When they get really mad they act like bulls.”

~“This is huge. It will go down in history, I know it.” (Referring to the Sponge Bash Sponge Bob Square Pants show that is coming on Friday night)

~“It was very stressful. I was anxious. I think I started to sweat.” (talking about voting on-line for his favorite Sponge Bob episode)

~“We were little squirts back then.” (Referring to last year)

~“I can’t wait for Sloppy Joes.” (He was actually referring to Monkey Joe’s!)

~“We’re hooligans. I have no idea what that word means. I think it’s a tribe in Africa.” (said around the dinner table)

~"I'm opening the hatches! (When he peed in the front yard...with my permission. :) )

“Can I have a drink of water?” (It was bed time. Andy said to wait til tomorrow thinking it was a ploy for extra awake time.) “Okay, I can just drink my spit. It tastes pretty good.”

More Camp notes

(I forgot my camera when we were away from home today!)

Day 3:

Church playground. Monkey Joe's. Chick-Fil-A. Star Wars. The creek. Tie-dye t-shirts. Sponge Bash on tv. More ice cream and peanut butter m&ms. Grilling out burgers and corn-on-the-cob.

3rd Annual Camp Stinky Feet

Night 1:

Pretend tales in the backyard. Safari hat and binoculars. Meatballs and spaghetti. 3-D movie. A visit from the tooth fairy (Jackson).

Day 2:

Breakfast picnic. Building marble runs. Transforming Transformers. Legos. Our favorite park. A trip to the creek. Chuckie Cheese.Treasure boxes. A quiet video. Poppy seed chicken. Ice cream cones. Bowling.

Picking blueberries

Today we went to the blueberry patch. I was a little concerned because we sent out a mass email and only girls that are Lydie's age were available. Normally we play with kids the boys' ages. But the boys were up for the challenge and helped and played just fine with the younger kids. Surprisingly, Lydie was the toughest trouper about the heat. But all in all, every one had fun and now we can look forward to blueberry pie and smoothies and waffles for the next few weeks! Blueberries are like the flavor of summer wrapped up in pretty blue packages. I love them!

Thirsty

"God is the kind of God who will be pleased
with the one thing I have to offer
— my thirst...
When we hope in God
we glorify God as the fountain of deep and lasting joy...
God is delighted not by the resourcefulness of bucket brigades,
but by the bending down of broken sinners
to drink at the fountain of grace.”
~John Piper

Her love dance

Her Daddy's love is only a speck of the love her heavenly Father feels for her (and us). It's unfathomable! She (we) are lavishly loved.

(Pictures from Lydie and Andy's date night...a trip to the Disney store. The last one is her little dance that she does when her love tank is full which is multiple times a day. We are so much alike.)

Barnacles in the kitchen

We just made some Rice Krispy Treats and a flower arrangement. A family we met at a graduation party invited us over for dinner tonight. When you are born and raised in the south, you can't enter a house for dinner (with a clear conscience) without bringing something! So these little things are what we chose as gifts for tonight. I love to work on "projects" with Jaybird because he always says the most quotable things! Here's today's quote:

(We were stirring the dry cereal into the sticky marshmallows) "Look at the way they stick, Mom. They are just like barnacles!"

Between the laughter and the contest to see who could catch the most flying marshmallows in our mouths, a little thing turned into a big memory. Sure do love these days!

Infinite joys

I desire to be a mother--
if only to give food to the craving activity of my soul...
Maternity is an enterprise in which
I have opened an enormous stake...
Motherhood will develop my energy, enlarge my heart,
and compensate me for all things by infinite joys!

--Honore de Balzac, Memoirs of Two Young Married Women (1894)

Pictures of a wonderful week. I enjoyed the company of my little ones so much!

Am I a push-over?

My Toot keeps me on my toes. He has performed many a "science project" around the house over the years. Some could have been life threatening like trying to make instant oatmeal by putting the entire package in the toaster (age3). Some have been unattractive, but not harmful. Like when he dug half a dozen holes in the front yard just to "test the shovel" (age 5). And others have been just plain funny, like when he has taken apart house hold objects just to "exercise the screwdriver". And he has concocted more magic potions than I could document in a cookbook.

Today he had two little adventures worth documenting. The first is a repeat offense. He cut his hair. No biggy, we just got a hair cut yesterday and he chose a lock of hair on top of his head. But, why? And the other was a little more radical. He stuck a kitty in the frigerator. I have no idea why, but his reason was "to cool her off. I was going to get her in a minute." And then, he always says, "I am so sorry, Mom. I just wanted to find out....)

The big problem is I love his curiousity. I have got to be more firm with him, but it's a real struggle for me because these moments in the day CRACK ME UP. He is so affectionate and easy going. And besides, it's really hard to keep a straight face when you're looking into these eyes...

Note the new hair cut. He insisted on a "spike in the front". It suits him!

Sweet summer

We are enjoying summer immensely. I can hear the crickets and frogs outside in full swing. I can see the fireflies through the window, filling the yard with sparkles. I still feel the sand under my fingernails and the sting of a little too much sun from the beach. I love this season! Tonight for dinner we ate tacos, and fresh corn on the cob and strawberries- a perfect summer meal. We have had so many different fresh veggies this summer to eat, between our garden and a friend's. I love late nights and sleeping in. And tonight, I laughed at how dark skinned and light haired the kids have become over the last few weeks from endless days at the pool or beach. It's all so good and I am so thankful!

We spent the day doing yard work and running errands. (We were running errands for 6 hours, to be exact!) So tomorrow we will take a trip into the city and see the aquarium and the big park. No exact time frame, no where to be- ahhhh, it feels wonderful!

"Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....

Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light;

and the landscape lay as if new

created in all the freshness of childhood."

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Happy birthday, USA!

We enjoyed a quick, four day trip back to the beach for the fourth. We had 27 family members altogether. Our fun included snorkeling at Shell Island, swimming, a shrimp boil party, and fireworks. We enjoyed staying in the same condo with my brother's family so much! Every minute with aunts, uncles, and cousins adds to a treasure trove of memories! I am so thankful for the wonderful country we love and the freedom we enjoy!My children with my brother's

Jaybird (8), Anna (6), Ross (8), Greyce (3), Toot (6), Lydie bug (2)

Enough food for an army!
Lydie and I (That's a band-aid on her head. She got a deep gash when she took a bad fall playing on the patio. Thankfully, no stitches.)

Girl cousins. Unfortunately, the boys avoid the camera like the plague!

A rare kissy mood. Lydie has been rubbing off my kisses lately. :(

Our little family

The long wait

Yesterday we were forced to take my car to the shop. Because of the holiday, many people were having their cars fixed as well. We were told our problem required an hour and a half of our time.
Since we were in a bustling area of town, we decided to walk a couple of blocks and have lunch together. We were having a ball together when the mechanic called and informed me that my brakes were 99% gone. When I tried to call my husband to tell him, my phone battery died. Now we were several blocks away, in the heat of the day, with no phone. I told the kids we would have to head back. About that time, my boys showed me the awful blisters on the bottom of their feet from the diving board the day before. I dreaded the walk for them!

When we finally returned to the shop, we were now up for a new tire, tire rotation, new brakes, and an oil change...and a three hour wait! When the mechanic predicted a 4:00 departure (we arrived at 11:30), I began to panic internally. Lydie had missed her nap the day before and two days in a row would be brutal. Thankfully, the waiting room had a toy box with some fun books and puzzles, but how long would that help?

I got myself so worked up! Amazingly, the kids were completely content. None of them asked to leave or "How much longer?", not even once. Lydie made a friend (70 year old sweet Grand mom), Toot watched cartoons, and Jaybird found an I Spy book. I was the only one pacing the floors, waiting on disaster, and praying unfaithfully.

I am left wondering, how many times I have worked myself up expecting disaster that never came? I can look back and see so many times that the Lord has turned an uncomfortable situation into something meaningful. Actually, He does this with all things that seem bad! I am reminded of a promise that "He works all things together for good for those who love Him". When I walk into an unexpected challenge, I tend to waste my time worrying or trying to change things. It would be wise for me to go ahead and fully submit myself to whatever the day holds for me, always acknowledging that my day (with all of its twists and turns) is a gift from my heavenly Father!

Gifts from yesterday:
~A great lunch with my kids
~A friendship built between a two year old and a seventy year old
~My wonderful conversation with the same lady sprinkled with loads of encouragement
~Encouragement from my children as I watched them wait patiently
~Time to look at an I Spy book for over an hour with Jaybird
~A fixed car
~A faith-building experience

"We live by faith, not by sight."

II Corinthians 5:7