Just Call Me "Flo" yonce!

A few years ago, my BIL was sorting through my old, old CD's and made an off-hand remark. He called me "Flo-yonce". Why? Well, if you took a look at my old, old highschool/college era CD collection...it would be rather...eh.....hip-hoppy. I liked the songs that made you want to shake your booty.

I still do, but I've grown since then. My music palatte now includes Christian music, Country (always), the "Nora Jones-ish" coffee house type songs, oldies like James Taylor, beach tunes from Jack Johnson, great voices like Josh Groban, or the homey stuff of Steve Tyrell. Shoot, I even have David Tolk's piano music (wow...check it out if you haven't!).

So today, I went for a run and well.....as always....my Flo-yonce past comes back, but it's toned down a little. I thought I'd share with you some of my "running playlist" on my ipod, which may date me a little bit! I don't know why, but I just thought I'd archive this post so my daughters can make fun of me one day. Maybe you'll even add one of these to your list!

Warm-up:
Janet Jackson "Where Are You Now?"
Colbie Caillat "Tied Down"
Fergie "Big Girls Don't Cry"
Running:
Beyonce (of course!) "Irreplaceable" and "Crazy in Love"
Christina Aguilera "Fighter"
Katharine McPhee "Love Story"
Natasha Bedingfield "Unwritten"
Kelly Clarkson "Since U Been Gone"
Taylor Swift "You Belong With Me"
Britney Spears "Toxic" (yes....shame on me.)
Michael Jackson "The Way You Make Me Feel"..............

The list goes on, and even thought it doesn't include much of the heavy hip-hop I used to listen to, that's only because I'm more of a light-hippity-hoppity girl these days. Beyonce is about as hip as I get.

Anyway. Just a silly little post. You can berate me now.

Bed of Roses

Okay, I know there aren't any roses in this bouquet. But remember that movie Bed of Roses with Christian Slater? Ladies....? Ring a bell? (whatever happened to him anyway?) Anyhoo, I remember watching that movie with my best friend during high school. We...okay, she...was crying her eyes out, sniveling, snorting...the pretty stuff. Since I don't cry, I was thinking about the part where he said the reason why he became a flower delivery guy was because he gets to brighten people's day.

Well said, Christian. Or whoever wrote the script.

Today I turned 33. My dad had these beautiful flowers delivered to me, and yes, it did brighten my day. Earlier this morning, my husband asked me, "Is this what I thought my life would be like at 33?". I groaned and said nothing, of course. (It was 5am and we had just gotten through P90X.) But when I got to think about it, I would have to say "yes." An adamant "yes".

I wanted a family. Sweet children. A good...scratch that...a great marriage. A loving, Godly household. Enough money to live on. A job that changes lives. So yes. I am where I hoped I would be at 33.

That got me thinking even more. Where do I hope I'll be at 43? Or 53 even? For sure, I hope I'll be right in the midst of raising teenage daughters who speak boldly for Christ (and headed to A&M, natch!) But for myself? I sure do hope I'm speaking boldly for Christ. I wonder if I'll be doing something that involves my growing interest in food and charity? (I don't know...it's something I've been pondering for a while...) I wonder what the feet of my faith will look like.

All I know is life is short. 33 got here quickly. 43 will be here before I know it. My feet better get to movin'.

Art Winner!

1st Place Winner and Merchant Award

2nd Place Winner

This weekend Henderson county is having its 82nd Annual Art Show and we entered Grace's two paintings in the Youth Division. Low and behold, they won 1st and 2nd! Now I didn't have the heart to tell her that there were only 3 entries total in the 4-5 year old division, but when we went to receive the awards, we were overwhelmed with the number of compliments from everyone! I was mainly proud that Grace got the opportunity to feel proud of her work.....

Also, at school, she was able to show these two pictures and tell all about how she made them, materials used, etc. In the words of her teacher, "the kids all sat and listened while Grace explained everything." She even got to go to several other classes to show her work.
I know that made her excited! Way to go, Gracie!

Softly Call the Muster

Aggie Muster 2010

Muster 4.21.10 came and went. One of the finest Aggie traditions that continues to unite the "I bleed maroon" fans. This year, the speaker was a sweet friend and former yell leader, so Boog & I had to attend. We saw many fellow Ags that we knew...many we didn't know. But it's funny how such a large community can feel so small at times. It was a great night. A remembrance for those who have passed and a celebration of the Aggie spirit.

Muster ended with the reading of The Last Corps Trip.

That last line gets me everytime....

15 Months

Off they go...friends forever.

Don't they go by in a blink? One minute, you're exhausted from making sure they don't eat leftovers out of the trashcan or shove ten portions of cookies in their mouth. You are at the counter with them on your lap, coloring and oohing and ahhing over their scribble marks. Then all of the sudden they are walking. Having conversations. Helping you bake. Just the other day, my almost six year old read half of a "Fancy Nancy" book in just about 10 minutes. Reading!

Sophie, you're 15 months today and it HAS gone by in a blink. You are still the pickiest little eater in our household. You have a quick temper, but are easy to cool down. You make our hearts melt when you tell everyone "ni-night" when it's time for your baba *no....we haven't kicked the ba-ba at nighttime yet...shame* You love to copy-cat your sister. You could take walks outside for forever. And those hugs......we can't get enough of those hugs.

Your sister thinks the world of you. So do we.

360 Evaluation

I've been monitoring myself lately. Taking stock of my life. My time spent on the computer, phone, P90x...versus....family, bible, reading, etc. I've actually liked a few things I'm seeing, and have abhorred a few things as well. I thought I'd share some results. After all, why not?

phone: Doing pretty good in this area. Namely because hardly anyone calls our home phone because no one knows the number. And my cell? Hardly any one calls because they know it's never charged. So phone? Check. Doing good. (But maybe I need to check on my family/friend relationships! Apparently I don't really talk to anyone. What's my sister's name again?)

computer: I do blog, and I read other blogs. But blogging is quick and I feel, worthwhile, for the simple reason of: I don't scrapbook, therefore I blog. : ) I don't tweet. I won't tweet. I do facebook, but I'm starting to ....what's the word? Fall out of love? I liken facebook to peer pressure. I'd like to quit, but it seems like everyone's doing it. I need to get better. If I see myself checking facebook more than twice a day, I disgust myself a little.

P90X: Going on the 9th day. Boog & I get up at 5am for our one hour workouts. I really enjoy it (even with the sleep deprivation), my muscles are starting to firm up, it provides a little bonding time for my hubs and I sans the kiddos.....but it all leads to a little bit of guilt because (see below)......

Bible reading:...(continued) I know I'm not spending an hour a day doing this. I definitely am feeling convicted here. God's worth a lot more than a pair of good lookin' triceps. In fact, how does God feel when I spend more time improving the look of the triceps He created, as opposed to getting to know the Creator Himself? Aaarrgghhh. Hit me right in the gut.

Family: I must say, teaching has its perks. Now that Boog's free from coaching duties, I feel we're getting more quality AND quantity family time than ever. We're both home by 4:30, and usually, the rest of our day is spent together, in the sun with the girls, going for walks, and eating dinner together. Doing good here......(until football season).

Friendships: I'm going to be brutally honest here and mark myself with a C-. (No, please don't offer up those, "flo, you're a great friend"...blah, blah, blah.) Truth be known, I don't call people enough. I am not thoughtful enough, nor do I try enough. I need to get better at this. (Facebook hasn't been helping this matter....it's like you know things about your friends, without really having to pick up the phone.)

Outreach: Both Boog and I feel like something's on this horizon here. We're not quite sure what it is or what it looks like....hard to examine this area right now. We'd love some prayers for our path here.

And finally...
Marriage: I mark us with a B+. Room for improvement, but very satisfactory. I could find several ways to be a better wife, but overall, I leave my house most every morning with a kiss from the man I've always dreamed about marrying. So therefore...I can't complain.

This really has been on my mind a lot lately. I realize a few things about Flo that I like, and a few I don't.

It's all definitely food for thought.

Spring Gets Me Thinking...

'bout some good ol' baseball.
(photo circa a lifetime ago!)
Can you spot me?... Flashback over a decade ago at this time of year, and I would probably be sitting somewhere in Olsen Field, freezing my patootie off, with my fellow Diamond Darlings, spitting sunflower seeds, and watching my Aggies swing away. Good times.

I went to the College World Series once (the Aggies really stunk it up!), but even though our showing wasn't the best, the experience was about as All-American as you can get. My dream, as I've said before, is to become a regular up there. Take a family trip every year and soak up the sun with some powerhouses of baseball. Watch some real pitching action, eat hot dogs, with a baseball cap on all day, and a great environment.

Sophie's 1. I don't think she's up for the trip yet. But just wait. Omaha...we'll be there soon.

One Day She'll Forgive Me

( Is This Bedhead Precious or What??)

No, I'm not talking about forgiving me for posting these pictures. I'm sure my children will have a lifetime of therapy bills to send me once they realize I have blogged about their entire lives.
I'm talking about forgiving me for what surely earns my
"Mother of the Year" award.
It's barely a quarter into 2010.

Tonight I was cooking PW's "Marlboro Man" sandwiches. (Yes, we're still going strong with P90X.....No, we haven't adopted the nutrition plan, obviously.) If anyone knows Pioneer Woman, she likes a little heat (aka tabasco) with all her meals. So I added the heat. I tasted the heat. And my super-spicy-lovin' palate told my brain that they tasted great!
Then my brain switched off.

I peeled off a morsel of the meat...truly a morsel...maybe the size of a pencil eraser....and let Sophie try. Within minutes she was screaming, crying, and wailing. Since my brain was off, I didn't put two and two together. I thought maybe her stomach hurt or something. 5 minutes later of screaming, my hubs brought in some tastebud soothing milk, and viola, she was cured. Smiling and happy...only not smiling at me.

She did not want me to put her down for bed tonight. She flailed about and reached for daddy. I always put her down. Not tonight.
Maybe tomorrow my bedheaded baby girl will have forgiven me.....

Well....I Did It.

P87x. 3 days of it down, 87 more to go.

People look at me funny because it takes me a while to sit in a chair I'm so sore, but it feels good to have taken the first step of saying "yes".

A HUGE credit for this journey will have to be given to my hubs, who so far, has taken it upon himself to wake me up at 5am, have the water bottles and towels ready for us, the DVD ready to play, and even a pen to write our reps/weights! If it weren't for him, I'd be hitting the snooze button for sure.

P87X....I hope I can get down to P1X!

To Do It or Not To Do It

P90X.
....THAT is the question.

My mus-cul-ly brother-in-law started it. It meaning the P90X craze that has taken over. It worked so well for him (the dude in shades holding my munchkin!) and his wife, that they've practically become the P90 spokespeople.
I'm thinking of trying it. I'm scared of trying it.

I need inspiration - that's a good thing. I need to get rid of my Sophie flab that's been hanging around for oh, 14 months now, that's another thing. I need to figure out whether I can devote one hour a day for six days a week to do it though.
That's the hardest thing.

One hour a day. Six days a week. A nutrition plan. All that is enough to make me want to regurgitate the leftover Easter cupcake and ice cream I just ate. (I don't think that's P90ish!)

What to do, what to do.....or just do nothing. Nope. It's about to be bathing suit season.

(Here's my other inspiration...the Athleta catalog! )

Easter Eggs, Schmeester Eggs....

The egg hunt didn't really hold a candle to our country-fied Easter this year. The girls were in pink, but quickly changed to play clothes so that we could get down to kite flying, skeet shooting, and playing in the dirt. All at Mimi's and Papaw's, of course. It was a glorious day....we DO serve a risen Savior! Hallelujah!

Easter 2010

The girls
She's never gonna be too old for this....right?
Sophie found out how to open them....

Daddy and Gracie...how high can they go?

Reallllll high! (Can you see it?)

4 Kites Now....

Shooting the .22

Boog feelin' pretty good about it....

Couldn't be a country Easter without a little dirt playin'

My Sweaty Sweet Eyes

Channeling Frank Sinatra (the western version)

Good Evening Folks!

Can't leave out sissy....

All in a day's fun...with a cowboy hat.