Pumpkin Patch Cuties

We took the boys to the pumpkin patch last night at a church here in town. We didn't have our camera with us, but Charles and Erica had there's and took a few pictures of our boys. Hopefully, we'll get some more, but Charles sent me this one today. It made me laugh. Hope you'll get a smile out of it, too!

I Need To Get Out More

I just realized as I reached into the fridge for the second nap time in a row that juice boxes have become my guilty pleasure. Shouldn't it be a soap opera or chocolate?

Word To This Mama

I went on a walk with a friend this morning. We've been walking for a while together, but we normally walk sans kids. Since the weather has been nice and since Kris has to leave early now, we walked with our double strollers today for the first time. My friend's little girl didn't really want to ride, she wanted to run and walk with us. That went about like you would imagine. I could tell my friend was frustrated because she kept apologizing. All I could think was, "Sister, if you only knew how many walks we have taken with one or both of the boys screaming..."

This led me to think about all the times my outings or playdates have been miserable because of how worried I was about the bad behavior of my children and the onlookers' thoughts about my suitability as a parent. Why, oh why, do I do that to myself? When someone else's child acts like a pill, I can mostly overlook it and think, "Man, I'm glad it's not my turn today." I can give grace because I remember yesterday and know that tomorrow is coming. I have come to the conclusion that people (myself included) who judge moms and their children either A)Don't have children of their own or B)Are not in touch with reality.

My word to myself today is this: Kids behave badly sometimes, so cut yourself some slack!!

A Little Thanksgiving

I don't have any good excuses for not updating. Kristen has a newborn and two other babies, and she's been updating regularly. Kate moved and is about to have a baby with two other children, and she has updated. For crying out loud, Christy blogged every day last week!

I will say that I went out of town kind of suddenly. We were supposed to be going to Camilla tomorrow, but plans changed a bit, and we ended up going Thursday until yesterday. We had a great time playing with cousins, seeing old friends and eating Mama's cooking. It may take us a while to recuperate from all the excitement, but it was worth it.

Okay, the reason for the sudden trip: Kris started a new job today! Kris started real estate right out of college in 2001. God was so gracious and allowed Kris to be a part of the real estate boom here in Florida. Perfect timing, absolutely. Even during that time, however, Kris has been wondering if real estate was really for him and toying with the idea of a more steady job. With the market being what it is, we are thrilled that he was able to get a job with the county property appraiser's office. So, he started work today and is very excited. We definitely have much to thank God for.

One Man's Trash...

...inevitably gets put to use by someone in my husband's family. Kris still blushes when he talks about his childhood memories of his dad picking "treasures" out of trash piles. I have to be honest that the first time we went on a bike ride as a family and Mr. Eric made the return trip with a vacuum laying across the handlebars, I was grateful I was new to the area and didn't know anyone.

Two major items that have come directly out of the trash or have been brought home when someone else was going to throw it away are the weed-eater and the lawn mower. Mr. Eric is genius when it comes to fixing things. I can't list all the things that Kris and Mr. Eric have made out of wood that has been salvaged from a dump at new construction. This is seriously just the short list.

So, the other day, we were heading to the ball field for Kris to play his softball game, and we saw a tractor in a trash pile by the road. Kris says, "Million bucks says my dad sees that and picks it up." Sure enough, they get to the ball field with a smile on their faces and a green tractor in the back of their truck.

Therefore, without further ado...



And after having been married for over five years, I have been sucked in. These are the "treasures" I picked up yesterday.

On the way out somewhere I called Kris and told him that the neighbors had put this shelf in the trash and that it looked like it was in good shape. He rearranged our entire garage and gave the boys their own shelf for their toys. They LOVED it, and really enjoy taking their toys from the shelf and putting them back.

And I saw this fabulously cute bed in a trash pile when I went to visit some friends yesterday. What I had to do to wrangle it into my car was positively shameful, so I'm trying to forget about that and focus on what a cute bed this is.

Kris' Belated Birthday Post

Kris, you are:

Patient

The best cuddler

A great listener

Our Best Friend

My Stud

The best part of our day


Thank you for who you are! You are all these things and more. You give our boys such a clear picture of their heavenly Father and how much He loves and enjoys us. I couldn't ask for a better husband and father to my boys than you. Thank you for adding to our home what no one else could add with your humor, steady ways and gentle, loving spirit. You are OUR treasure!!!

Another Luke Funny

When Mrs. Bonnie took Luke to Disney a couple of weeks ago, she said that "A Small World" was his favorite ride (It has always been mine, too. It has a short line and it's air-conditioned. I'll ride that puppy all day.) So, I laughed when he started singing the song the other day and these were his lyrics:

"It's a small world at the mall..."