The No-Spend Year through a Child's Eyes

So, hi guys, this is Emma. 

I'm sure that you've heard my Mommy talk about our "no-spend year" before.  Well, I'm going to tell you more about that from my perspective. 

When mommy first told Cal and I about her idea, I thought that it would just be cutting off Matilda Jane clothes, and fast food. 

This, however, was not the entire idea. 

I seriously think that our family is reverting back to the early 30s.  I mean, back then people didn't really just go buy stuff, but they saved any money that they could to send their children to school, or buy food.  Half of thetime, if you were a kid or an adult, you would be hungry.  As in super hungry.  We probably won't be going without lunch.  That makes me hungry! ;]

 When most people think about the early 30s, they think that people kind of just had the stuff that they needed.  Such as: food, clothes, and shelter.  Well a lot of them didn't have that unless they worked HARD for them.  My great grandma told me that back then they had to make their own clothes.  Shirts, pants, dresses, socks, underwear, and they only had a very small amount of them.

We luckily will not have to do that.

Not only are we just buying what we need, but we are also trying to get rid of the stuff that we don't need. We are trying to get rid of some old clothes, toys, and just general stuff. I got rid of some dresses last week that I either didn't wear, or are too small.  My brother has a hard time getting rid of things, for some reason.  He keeps EVERY little thing.  I have explained to him that all the things that he gets rid of [if it isn't just trash] goes to kids who have none, or little. He is so difficult sometimes!  Grrrrrrrrr!

So far it has been hard to stick with our plan, but I'm sure that it will all turn out O.K.

I really don't know about the rest of my family, but I am starting to realize that we just don't need all of this stuff. 

I kind of want to scream sometimes because it can get pretty angering to not get what you want.  I mean, I don't get what I want outside of the no-spend year, but I get even less of what I want in the no-spend year. 

You might think that I am exaggerating but I'm not. 

Well, I hope that this has been helpful and inspiring.  Bye.

Tigers and Bridges and the Randomness of it All

Sometimes life is a bit odd...

Like maybe you have a tiger for dinner.  

His name is Hobbes by the way.  

He wasn't thrilled with us not having tuna but he was a trooper and stuck around. 

There are some deep conversations going on.  

Deep. 

And then there's this girl.  Oh my, she has our whole big heart.  This girl is now a Junior Girl Scout.  No brownies for us around here.  

Sniff, sniff.  

I usually can make it through things pretty nonchalantly.  

Like sands through the hourglass...so are the days of our lives...

But this was taken during bridging ceremony which had me tearing up.  I think specifically because I kept remembering this silly girl in a blue daisy vest who had no problem wearing pigtails wherever she went.  

Where have those times gone?  

She just looks so grown up, I can hardly stand it!!!  

Aah!  

So that's the gist of what we've been doing in these parts.  

Oh and traveling.  

Lots and lots of travel.  In the last month we've been to Illinois, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky.  Whew!  I'll blog about those sometime but not now.  

Now is built for randomness.  

Along with randomness comes random thoughts and here ya go...

 I was thinking about this past year that happened. I know that is something that generally people do around the first of the year but I am a late bloomer so here I am. 

I am just in awe of how God has shaped my life.  I have made peace with things I've struggled with for years.  FOR YEARS!  Things that you want to talk to people about and wrestle with and fret over and then it just eats you up .  Anyway, I finally took the plunge and answered God's calling to make things right and you know what?  It really was no big deal.  I mean it was a big deal but not nearly as big as my worried mind had made it into over the years.

I've also made things right with someone I was mean to in the past.  Do you have those people where you think about your past with them and kind of cringe?  Am I the only one who has done that?  Anyway, this person isn't really in my life anymore, but thank goodness for Facebook and its reconnecting ways!  I was able to reach out and apologize and I felt so much better.  Whether it was accepted or not I at least tried to make things right.  And you know what?  They forgave me and we were able to move past it which is so amazing.  God is just so good!

And on the other end of things I was able to finally bury the past with someone else who it just didn't work out with.  Someone who we had tried to make things right with and it was not reciprocated.  Shortly after we decided to cut ties (by we I mean Nicholas and I as we try to make decisions together) I read this devotion about not being close with everyone.  It gave the example of David not being all buddy buddy with Saul when he was trying to kill him but fled.  So I have felt such peace with the need to flee after a season of trying.  

And that's just the way God is.  I am so reminded of Romans 8:28:

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

And I could go on and on with other examples about how God has helped us in family situations or I've seen God stand up for me.  In things with our house and car and traveling mercies, so much God has done this past year.  God is working everything out for our good.  It's so awesome to know that and have the peace that that brings. 

And so whatever you are going through, whether it has to do with having tigers over for supper or big girls walking over a bridge towards you and their future, just know that God works it all out for your good.  

Love you friends! 

Dear Mama, Babies Don't Keep

I am in the middle of creating my annual photo calendar for my grandmother.  While looking through photos to select I found these and realized I never posted any.  Here are some, just to document that these blessed children of ours are, in fact, growing up entirely too quickly.  

Yowzers! 

This creek turns into a waterfall a little down the way and has a very special place in my heart.  I played here as a little girl during church picnics and later splashed through it as I ran a cross country course.  And now my babies are here, with their long legs and good balance, ready to take on the top of the waterfall.  

Swoon. 

 This girl is getting so big!  I have another picture to illustrate her lanky legs but she always takes the cutest pictures with her Grandma Peg.  They are just adorable together and I love watching their relationship grow.  Plus, Emma is sillier with her Grandma than with most others :)

Cal looks like he's sneezing but really he's just goofing off. And this is Emma's "I'm tolerating my brother because he's my brother and I have to" look.  But look at her.  Why does her face look like she's 17?  Excuse me as I go cry...

Okay I'm back.  I'm okay.  But seriously, she is gorgeous.   

Look at this big girl.  She is so grown up!  I just can't deal.  She does the foot pop thing on her own.  It's like she screams "my cousin's Miss South Carolina y'all". Geesh, ya try the crown on and you turn into a model :)  Thanks Caro for apparently giving this girl staging advice or something!  :)  

Our babies aren't babies anymore.  But I love them.  I think I'll keep them :)  

I'm just trying to savor each and every day a little more.  They will be out the door before we blink.  

Dear Mama, Babies Don't Keep

I am in the middle of creating my annual photo calendar for my grandmother.  While looking through photos to select I found these and realized I never posted any.  Here are some, just to document that these blessed children of ours are, in fact, growing up entirely too quickly.  

Yowzers! 

This creek turns into a waterfall a little down the way and has a very special place in my heart.  I played here as a little girl during church picnics and later splashed through it as I ran a cross country course.  And now my babies are here, with their long legs and good balance, ready to take on the top of the waterfall.  

Swoon. 

 This girl is getting so big!  I have another picture to illustrate her lanky legs but she always takes the cutest pictures with her Grandma Peg.  They are just adorable together and I love watching their relationship grow.  Plus, Emma is sillier with her Grandma than with most others :)

Cal looks like he's sneezing but really he's just goofing off. And this is Emma's "I'm tolerating my brother because he's my brother and I have to" look.  But look at her.  Why does her face look like she's 17?  Excuse me as I go cry...

Okay I'm back.  I'm okay.  But seriously, she is gorgeous.   

Look at this big girl.  She is so grown up!  I just can't deal.  She does the foot pop thing on her own.  It's like she screams "my cousin's Miss South Carolina y'all". Geesh, ya try the crown on and you turn into a model :)  Thanks Caro for apparently giving this girl staging advice or something!  :)  

Our babies aren't babies anymore.  But I love them.  I think I'll keep them :)  

I'm just trying to savor each and every day a little more.  They will be out the door before we blink.  

Thankful For My Babies

What a rollercoaster of a year this has been!  

As we roll into the week of thanks, I find myself particulary thankful for these precious children of mine.  

So blessed God chose me to be their Momma!

As we go through life doing this super, crazy busy life, I am thankful for the opportunities God has afforded us...that I can stay home, that I have such an amazing husband, and such a great family network surrounding us.  It's just amazing.

Not sure how much I will be on here this week with Thanksgiving preparations under way.  So in case you don't see much of me I hope you have an amazing holiday with your family and stay safe!

Count your blessings, name them one, by one, count your blessings...

Sounding like Audrey

Sunday night on our way home from Awana's Nick was driving and talking to Emma.  No big deal until he turned to me and quietly asked "when did Emma start sounding like Audrey from Christmas Vacation?" 

And I could not stop laughing. Because yes, she does sound like that sometimes.  

So funny. 

Family Fall Festival

 Happy Fall, Y'all!  Yesterday being the first day of Autumn around here, we decided to pack up and have our traditional trek around to welcome the season!  Every year we visit a local mill for a tour, have a picnic, then go to a nearby Orchard to pick apples.

 These are the kinds of faces I get from Cal these days :)  Silly goose.  This was before they sang their fall songs for Daddy and I.  We've been working on songs about leaves and Autumn all week.  Seeing as we homeschool this was a family day/fall party/fieldtrip all rolled into one cute little package of a day!

 By picnic I mean we got take out from Panera.  I know, how planned of me.  But seriously we love their soups, it was a crisp, good day day for soup, Sunday.  And Daddy treated them to these cookies from there...yum!

 I had to document this as this is the most stubborn little boy I've ever met.  Seriously...ever!  Anyway, the boy won't even try to tie his shoes because he doesn't know how, or so he claims...Here he is tying his shoes.  He got most of it on his own and then Emma helped him finish.  But seeing him actually try to tie his shoes is a very rare photo indeed.

 Here are Emma and Daddy exploring the Dahlia garden...gorgeous, right?  By the way, this girl is looking too tall next to her 6 foot 4 inch Daddy...I'm just saying :(

 Hi Baby!  I love you!  This is the picture we always take, with the Mill behind us.  I'm pretty sure Nick thinks I'm insane that I always make him take the same pic of us every year :)

 These two...sigh.

 And these two together.  I called them my Puffy Vest Fellas.  These two go at it like cats and dogs with each other.  But here's how they really feel :)

 Then it was inside for a tour of the mill.  It wasn't on when we got there, the kids were bummed so this kind man who worked there turned it on and actually took us through the steps of how the grain is made.  That's right folks, it's a gristmill that still works!  We buy our year's supply of cornmeal there everytime we go and this time I picked up some bread flour too.  Excited to try to make wheat bread with the kiddos.

 The kids really enjoyed watching the stones grind the cornmeal we were able to take home!  Nothing like learning where your food comes from!

 Then it was onto picking apples!  Seriously, how cute are these kids?

 It's all about the outtakes, right?  How silly!!!

 Emma picked the biggest apple of the day and then proceeded to bite it before we could slip her a smaller one.  Not kidding, the four of us split that apple and it took us about 45 minutes between the 4 of us to eat it.  GINORMOUS!!!

 I think we ended up with two more bushels on top of this and then we were ready to go.  Momma's got lots of apples to make goodies with!

This was his proud moment when Daddy finally let him have his turn with the fruit picker.  He carried the apple in the basket all the way to the scales to pay.

So that was our day, hope you all are enjoying your fall!  Our house is all decorated for the season and we are loving the crisp weather!

Happy Fall, Y'all!

Cotswold Tea at Greenfield Village

On September 1st we began our family vacation.  We are trying to get the kiddos to see all 50 states and this year our trip was to Michigan.  We started the trip out at Greenfield Village in Dearborn.  If you have never been I highly, HIGHLY recommend it.  My grandma took me there when I was in college and I loved it so much that I was giddy to bring the family!

To try to describe it, it is basically a village made of homes that Henry Ford collected.  He had homes brought from all over the place of famous people.  It's amazing!

One of my favorite memories of this trip was our lunch.  The boys sought out some barbeque while Emma and I made our way to the Cotswold Garden for tea. The tea is located next to a stone cottage from England.  Here are Emma and I in the gardens.  She's growing up way too fast!

Waiting...

And Waiting...

These were the gorgeous flowers right next to our table.  As beautiful as it was there were bees everywhere!  The availability of the restaurant being open was "weather and bee" permitting, so they must have some serious bee problems at times.

Tea is served!

How cute is this tea cozy?

Here were my tea sandwiches.  They were scrumptious!  Emma's were peanut butter and jelly...how adorable is that?

The angel drinking tea!  She kept putting gobs of honey in her tea, along with lumps of sugar.  She would then stir, taste and declare "I think that's just about sweet enough!"  Cutie :)  We had Earl grey Lavender tea which was the most scrumptious tea I've ever had!!!  Must find!

Here's Emma exploring the inside of the cottage.  And as romantic as cottages seem, I don't think I have any desire to actually live in one after going through this one.

Here's the outside of the cottage...isn't it lovely?  Clara Ford loved teas and gardens so this was created for her.  I loved this whole experience and afternoon with my little girl.  I hope she remembers it all.  I know I will.

Emma suggested we start having tea at home which I think I would love to do but haven't figured out how to do it yet.  I want to research and do it right, ya know?  So if you know anything about it, let me know :)

First Day of School Photos

Our first day of school was Monday.  It was...interesting.  While Cal's been around the whole homeschool thing for sometime now, he was in a formal preschool setting so I never pushed him to participate too much as I didn't want to make him go through countless hours of schooling.  This summer he did school with Emma but I had him on a Kindergarten program.  The kid can read and knows numbers and can add and subtract.  Colors, sizes, community helpers, the definition of a noun, the Gettysburg Address, he's got it down.  So I decided he was ready for first grade.  Or some version of that.  We shall see...

Our Kazoo is in third grade!  Age wise she should be in second but she's always been so advanced.  Love her and her passion for learning.  

 How cute is this???

 Emma lost her top tooth last night and when I told her to smile, this is what I got...um, that's not smiling... She is too funny! And speaking of funny....I simply had to show you the progression of Cal's pictures I got...

 Last but not least, finally a smile was in there!  I think we are going to have a super fun school year and I can't wait to see what is ahead for us :)

This past week...

This past week we didn't have anything really planned but somehow all of our days were suddenly taken up with being busy.  Busy, busy, busy to be exact!  

We are in the thick of things with T-ball and I will not be shy telling you that I CANNOT wait until it is over.  Thankfully we have one more week and then we are done!  Praise the Lord we have made it! Both of the children are on the same team with my hottie of a husband as their coach.  So when I say we are doing t-ball, we are DOING t-ball.  Something fierce :) 

 Here's Emma in her infamous dress jersey!  I promise the girlie is wearing shorts :)

  I don't know what it is and it's fine if  you think I'm nuts, but there is something really sexy about watching your husband as a coach.  It's that fathering thing but with other people's kids.  Very handsome :)

 Poor Nick.  One of the only kids he has trouble with is his own.  It's hard for him I know but I'm also glad he's there to give him direction.  This is how the two of them look most of the time on the field...

 Emma is really starting to enjoy the game and has been busy practicing her skills.

And in other news we started painting the house.  By we I mean Nick.  Do you think he planned to wear underpants that match the new paint?  Ooh,lalala!

I love the paint color and we've had neighbors tell us they like it too, which we are so glad about!  Last year the neighbors behind us painted their house a color that can only be compared to the color of dried vomit.  And while I've somewhat gotten used to it, still It's just gross.  We didn't want our color to be to the likeness of that for people :)

You'll have to forgive me for not writing often.  It's summer and a lot of time we are away from the computer trying to get ourselves into trouble!  We are still doing school (supposedly) which is really hard when all you want to do is be on summer break.  Still, we are persevering and trying to finish up.

Hope you all had a great week this past week!  Can't wait to see what fun things this week has in store for us!

Rainbow Birthday Party

This blog could also be titled "Decorating with Rainbow for $6.00"  

Say what???  That's right folks.  I made the following decorations.  See?  

This backdrop for our present opening area...

This table cloth...

This buffet table decor...

And these ceiling decorations...

How did I do it you ask?  Well all  you need is plastic tablecloths from Walmart!  They are only 97 cents apiece!  Wowzers you say!!!!

It really all stemmed from the buffet table.  I had seen that done with fabric on Pinterest.  But seeing as a) my sewing machine is in the shop and b) I was trying to do this the NIGHT before the party, I knew sewing layers and layers of fabric could not be an option.  Plus it seemed like it would be really expensive.

So here's what I did...I cut each tablecloth into 4 equal portions longwise (1 piece for each project), which was super easy because the plastic was folded in half long ways and then in half again...so basically I just followed the fold lines and cut away.  Once I did that I made the rainbow buffet table surround by draping a bed sheet over and taping it all on.  I'm telling you, it's fancy doin's around here ;)  But I was really happy with the end result and everyone oohed and aahed over it.  Plus it was all so dirt cheap I didn't feel bad throwing it all away at the end of the night.

For treats I went with candy, candy, candy...jawbreakers, gumballs, and M&M's.

Rainbowy twizzlers and colorful forks.

Party favors for guests to take home.  Thanks for coming to my RainbLow party.  And yes I know, I am dork!

As we always do, after we eat, then we open gifts.  I was so proud of this girl that she took the time to read the cards.

Then we decided to have some cake!  I made it with a lot of love :)  It might not be the fanciest thing but Emma loved it and to me, that is all that matters.  I decorated it with "happy Birthday" candles from the dollar store.  The candies along the bottom are gumballs

Look at how excited she is :)

I should have taken a picture of it right when it was cut in but I was serving cake so didn't quite have  time.  Here's what it looked like about half way through.

A very happy girl being very silly for the camera with her rainbow cake.

So there you go, that was my rainbow party.  Very casual and relaxed.  It was fun.  And it was all when Emma wanted.  Game point.

And When That Doesn't Work...Bribe Them :)

Last year we started in a horrible pattern.  Every day Emma would wake up and in this whiny voice would say "but I don't want to do school today!" 

Ugh.  It was kind of horrid.  Not even kind of horrid.  It was REALLY horrid.  

It made me loathe school and sad to say, kind of loathe having to wake Emma up every day. 

So this year when we started school I figured there just had to be a better way.  There's just gotta be.  

So I went with the method of bribery.  Yep...good ol' bribery.  

Bribery in the form of incentive charts.  Incentivizing, bribing...whatever you called it, it worked for us.  

I used these charts because they matched the rest of the owl stuff I bought for our classroom.  You put a sticker on each dot and when the owl gets to the moon (or what I think is the moon) you get an incentive.    

We have used these primarily for attitudes before and during school.  If Emma (and Cal has one too) has a good day with her attitude towards school...does everything without complaining or whining, then she gets a sticker.  

She's filled two sheets so far.  Her first one got her a jibbitz for her Crocs.  

This one she chose to go to Sweet Frog's Frozen Yogurt Shop.  

 I'm sorry, I know I'm biased here, but isn't she just the cutest little girl ever?  Like ever, ever?

 Here they are, so excited!!!!

 Emma went with watermelon fro yo with all kinds of skittles and candy.  Cal went with a couple different flavors with all kinds of candy!

So yummy!

This year the incentive charts have really worked out for us.  The kids love having something to work towards. Most days her change of heart and the habit part of being good has been what has worked but when we are having a bad day, having a reminder of why we have a good attitude and working towards something has been a really good thing for us to have.

What are some of your tactics to get your kiddos to behave?  Have you ever used bribery??  Do you now think I am a horrid mother?  :)

Puddle Jumpers

By nature I am a clean person.  I don't like mud, being wet, or standing out in the cold.

But my children are different than me.

They enjoy mud and puddles and exploring.

Sometimes I need to let go of my inhibitions and just embrace the children's desire to explore and test the waters.

Ha!  Get it?  Waters?  Oh dear, I kill myself with this stuff.

Ba-dut-da...

So last week it poured...POURED!  But there was no lightening.  So we headed on out for a walk in the rain  with the dog.

So two excited kids, a jumping black lab, and lots of mud and puddles...yeah! What could be more fun?

 Emma is a puddle jumper!  Can you tell?

 Here's Emma falling in the mud.  I love her sense of adventure and willingness to get dirty.  Really, really dirty.

 Calvin in the same mud puddle is a little more demure.  This is about the extent of his jumping.  He likes to do what Emma does but isn't quite sure sometimes just quite how messy he wants to get.

 Thankfully when Emma joins him he becomes a little more adventurous.  We finally got a jump out off cute mister frog boots.

I love these two.  I love their hearts and their relationship with one another.  I love this stage of their little lives; they find so much joy in the simple things like jumping in mud puddles and taking your dog for a walk in the rain.

They challenge me as a mother and a person every day.  I always hope that they can change me with their joy rather than my personality ever turning them away from that joy.

Now to find some more puddles to jump through...

It's a Fun and Silly Time We're Having Here

Well I've been posting my blog series about Disney but haven't blogged lately about our day to day life.  Here's just a peek at what's been going on around here...

 What can be more exciting than Sonic's happy hour?  Not much according to these little guys.  They love strawberry slushes...I love Dr. Pepper with Vanilla added.  Yummy!

 This guy has been over the moon lately about Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!  He went to a Birthday party where he got this headband which he wears ALL of the time.  The other day his Lego magazine arrived and was so excited that it had the Turtles on it!  Turtle Power!

 The other day Emma was hanging out on her bed and I was tossing her clothes for her outfit of the day.  As you can see, this is what happened....poor dear :)

And so of course when Daddy came home she had to tell him about it.  As a result, they both thought at bedtime it would be hilarious to put unders on their heads.  They came downstairs for story time looking like this, singing a song they made up called "we love underwear".

Oh dear.  I love these two so much.  So cute!

Hope you have a Happy Weekend!