32 is so....

.... boring! My birthday came and went, and so far, 32 hasn't been that impressive.

It's nowhere's-ville.

I'm not old, but I'm not young.
I'm not mid-thirties, but I'm not a new-thirty either.
I'm young enough to have small children, but old enough to not be able to use "new-mom" as an excuse for my daily mistakes in childrearing.

I'm young enough to have a buff, toned physique, but old enough to not be able to get it without some serious child or husband-neglect.

Speaking of Buff, Toned Physique, does anyone get the Athleta catalogue? Talk about BUFF! Those gals inspire......plus, the clothes are super cute.

I love this swimsuit cover-up.

And I love their mix & match swim suits...

I plan on getting on that BUFF-TONED physique right after TAKS!

I Said I'd Never Do It....

....but I seem to be going against alot of what I 'said' I would do lately. Namely?

1) I said the battle against my Sophie-girth would begin April 1st. Here it is, April 25th, and not a single day of working out has begun. Now...I say, wait until after TAKS!

2) I said I would never have a patsy-baby. I loathed pacifiers.

But Sophie? She likes them. She uses them. And I let her.

3) And finally....I said that Grace wouldn't play organized anything for a loooong time because I don't want to over-schedule her. I still say that. I definitely want Grace to see the beauty in free-time and creative play outside, not "we have to be here", "we have to be there" all that time. BUT......when Grace got so excited at the thought of running around bases while mommy & daddy watch and cheer her on, I couldn't say no.

And thus....the princess plays t-ball.

In a dress and a pink helmet.

Progress....Slow Progress

It's coming along....slowly, but surely.

A new coat of exterior paint. (I'm not so sure about the color....it's not my favorite.)

Beadboard on the dining/kitchen/bathroom walls.
A new coat of yellowish/goldish paint to warm up the living area.
Refurbished and rebuilt kitchen cabinets.
More gray hairs.....check.

Several more repairs/work/painting to be done....check.

Making a left-to-rot old home into something great again....Priceless.

Why Do Babies Love the Booty-Pat?

This one certainly does.

All that patting! Sophie likes it when she's trying to go to sleep, and like a drummer, she can tell when I get off rhythm or when I shift my hand position a little....... The little cutie's got a knack for the beat. I, on the other hand, have some great triceps forming from all the patting. Unfortunately, I also have a great belly-girth forming from using my stomach as a stool for Miss Sophie to sit on. That can't be good for my alignment!

Redefining "Fixer-Upper"

This is not a "fixer-upper". This is a "fixer-completely".

Introducing our bungalow, baby.....

This is our rent house. It was bought to either rent or sell after a little fixin' up. But now, we're moving into it. A few posts ago, I wrote about how moving into it would save us a bundle and how we'll be able to build our dream home bit by bit on the way. However, right now.....work is being put into this home so that maybe......just maybe....we'll be able to have a little bit of a temporary dream home for a while.

I imagine turning it into a little cottage bungalow like this -

And turning the front porch into something like this....

So we've started the renovations. New floors, new windows, paint, fixtures, new cabinets, countertops, electrical work, some tree & stump removal, landscaping (whew!).....nothing too fancy, but can you imagine what a coat of paint would do to this interior? We spent the morning painting this room. The exterior has been painted. My hubs thinks he can make the fireplace look spectacular.

I hope we can. Got any ideas?

SHACK ATTACK....Coming Soon!

Be prepared! Pictures coming soon of our
HGTV/FLOTV/Wedon'tknowwhatwe'vegottenourselvesintoTV make-over of our rent house!

It's Messy.
It's Frightening.
It Needs A Ton of TLC.
It needs Genevieve or who ever that lady is on Divine Designs (isn't she amazing?)
It needs....prayer!
(And it really needs a third bedroom! Small spaces = friendly faces anyone?)

Keep posted.....

My Cutie-Patooties....

Easter Morning
Miss Sophie...almost 12 weeks old!

So Easter was off to a great, but cold and rainy, start. Isn't it funny how a monsoon or sudden frost is BOUND to happen on Easter Sunday? It's almost as if God's saying "look guys...it's not about the bunny, the eggs, or the dresses!" Still, it was fun to dress up the girls. They looked bright and "Easter-y".....

However, my girls in their PJ's and messy hair is still my favorite look!

A New Day....

Easter is when some of my most favorite hymns are sung......"He Lives"......"Crown Him With Many Crowns"....."Christ the Lord has Risen Today"...... Easter holds a lot of good memories of growing up and going to church with my grandma. Egg hunting around her home. Easter dresses.

Today I'm thankful. I truly believe that God knew my frustration level was on "HIGH". So last night, after getting home from church.......both girls were tired and in bed, asleep by 8:30. No one was home yet. It was just me. And I wasn't tired (wayyyy unusual.) So I finally got some quiet time to read and it was so refreshing. I hadn't been quiet in my mind or life in a long time!

I love Sophie and am so blessed to have her, but I'll be honest. Raising two is harder than I thought it would be! Not being able to help Grace as much because Sophie is in a more "needy" phase in her life is frustrating. Not being able to help out in church or go to the grocery store on a whim without having to cart around diaper bags, strollers, etc. is....well, not frustrating, but it's different! Adjusting, I guess. Grace and I were so mobile......it's not that way right now.

My sis helped me out with some wise words last night. I needed to hear someone tell me "It's Okay" to not be able to do all those things that I used to. That that phase in my life is on hold....and it will be back again. Just take care of lil'Soph and enjoy it.....

That was refreshing.

So I'm thankful for wise sisters. Thankful for great music and old hymns. Thankful for the health of my family. Thankful for Christ in my life.

Just thankful.

I Know That....

1. ....when I go to worship on Sunday morning and feel like a dry sponge - when every song, word, verse, or melody is so refreshing. I know I haven't spent enough time in God's word.

2. ......when I start trying to "people please" or look to others for my confidence. I know I haven't spent enough time just hanging out with God.

3. ...... when my mind gets hung up on life stuff. Wrapped around and involved to the point of total saturation. I know that's one of Satan's tools to keep my mind too busy for anything else.

4. .......when I start feeling like my prayers hit a glass ceiling. I know it's because I haven't drawn near to Him in quite a while.

Do you ever feel this way? That's how I've felt this week. Really, for the past few months. I still haven't "fiercely protected" my time with the Lord. In fact, I haven't protected it at all.......maybe I'm looking for excuses (Sophie, life, our "home" situation......) but regardless, they're all excuses.

I'm trying not to beat myself up. BUT when I haven't felt the desire to have those quality times with God, it scares me. I'm glad it scares me!

Anyway, I'm just posting my own streams of conciousness.....thought I might share them.
BTW....a tearful, heartwarming post today from Angie who lost her daughter on this day last year. The sweet pictures say it all....

Here's How MY Bluebonnet Pictures Turn Out...

We're sitting in fire ants. Grace just got through crying because one bit her. Cars are flying past us because we had pulled over on a major highway. My skirt is flying high, probably giving all the road warriors a nice view. My heels are two inches in the mud.

Jealous? All for this.
A tongue "stucked out" little girl with her sister.
Keepsakes? Definitely.

My little chunk. Almost 11 weeks now! Trying to eat the camera.

WWDRD. (What Would Dave Ramsey Do?)

I'm a BIG Dave Ramsey fan. Big. I believe in the basic principles he sells.....live debt free, live within your means, give back......."Live Like No One Else Today, So You Can Live Like No One Else Tomorrow". That's his mantra. Simple, right? ( Then why is it so hard to do sometimes? )

Well, we followed his baby steps and were able to get debt free after 3 years. We down-sized our home, traded in cars.....we did all the steps. So, now, completely debt free, we bought land and were ready to build.

Notice I said "were".

With a huge, deep inhale, we made the decision today to put a hold on building. Yes, I want a new home. Yes, I want to build on our property. Yes, I want to have my own touch on each square foot of a new house. But, no, we aren't ready. If we are to be true to ourselves, our beliefs, and how we handle this precious gift of 'debt-freedom', we needed to do the hard stuff now. Put away more in savings, be better prepared ......basically, take more time so we don't get ourselves in over our head.

So, with the inspiration from The Lettered Cottage, (this fabulous woman who has the best ideas on how to make something out of nothing), we are moving into one of our rent homes. It's teeny-tiny.....but hey, I can make anything work. We're going to sock money away in savings like there's no tomorrow, so we can be ready to build with peace of mind - if that is what we want to do.

Be prepared for a HGTV-like make-over of a 1,000 square foot cottage, courtesy of Goin'With the Flo blog! I need ideas for making this work!

Okay....I can exhale now!