Picture perfect... I don't think so!

I came across these pictures from last summer... I know that they got put in the "trash" file because none of them were "perfect"! But, now they make me laugh! When am I ever going to get three little boys to sit still by a stream full of rocks and take the "perfect" picture... ummmm.... never! But, the memories that come back of that day on a drive with Grandma Wall are perfect!

Chocolate dipped strawberries anyone???

 Maybe just a little tart!

I don't know what is more delicious... the chocolate dipped strawberries... or the little man eating them!

Wrapped around his little finger....

Cannon has McKay wrapped around his little finger! And he knows it! Whenever he gets in trouble with James or I he runs to McKay... In this picture Cannon has been crying because he got in trouble for dumping something out of the fridge & he went running out of the kitchen to find McKay. And McKay LOVES it! When it is time for us to go pick McKay up from school Cannon calls for him the whole time in the car on the way there... and screams when he sees McKay running for the car. If I say "no" to something he goes & asks McKay & McKay gives it to him! Lately the little man has been a little stingy with his kisses... but, he will give one to McKay anytime he asks for one! Cannon LOVES his big brother & McKay absolutely adores him to!

Can You Imagine...

I know that we have all had our share of heart ache... we all have our own personal struggles. Some more public than others. It has never been a secret of the heartache that I have gone through to have children. Or the heartache and utter panic my family felt when we heard of Travis's accident... We all have our moments... when our worlds are rocked. Sometimes it is something little that builds or sometimes it is something life shattering. I am a firm believer that our life is shaped by how we react in those moments... in the faith that we have that the Lord knows us better than we know ourselves. It takes a great deal of faith to turn in over to the Lord and place it in his hands & have faith in the outcome. In the thick of it it is hard to see past the moment...

I have been sick the last week and have spent a good portion of time in bed. I will admit that I am a huge fan of a good sleep in every now and then! I am known to bribe James with all kinds of things to be able to sleep past 7:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning! He and the boys are early risers... I have no choice but to be! But, 10 days sick in bed is a little much even for me. I spent a good portion of my days surfing blogs and trying to not go insane! Somewhere along the way I found the blog Life In Grace and literally spent hours reading her blog. Edie is a mother of four who gave up her profession as a family practice doctor to stay home and home school her children. I admire her outlook on life and have to say that I think that her home is dreamy! However, a couple days before Christmas last year her beautiful home burned to the ground in the middle of the night... her family miraculously made it out a live... here is her account of that night:

 http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/2010/12/the-god-who-promises.html#

I will tell you that her faith humbles me. I learned a long time ago to not feel sorry for myself. It wastes too much energy & I am entirely to blessed in life.

James & I had to find a quick rental when we were moving here to Sandy. We literally rented our house over the phone... something I will never do again! I have been vocal about how much I don't like this house... the paint on the walls drive me crazy, the carpet is dated, the fact that if you are in the shower you cannot flush a toilet drives me insane! There is no storage & the layout of the kitchen is terrible... not to mention the terrible lighting in every room...  I could go on. They are all trivial things. But, suddenly after spending a day reading her blog I was grateful for my home. Grateful to have my precious photo albums, outfits that I brought my babies home from the hospital in, my recipe books... I know that they are all worldly possessions... but, she lost it all. Can you imagine? I am grateful for the gentle reminders that the Lord gives me of how blessed my life is. I am grateful that people like Edie will share their experiences so that we can grow from their trials & strength.

Hey There Mister!

 This little man got one to... but, he was being a grouch!

A couple weeks ago I found these darling little glasses at the DI... they were the perfect size for the little guys in my life! I wanted to make them fun... a little "boyish"! With three little men I am constantly trying to make cute things "boyish"! So, I pondered for a couple days & while I was surfing Etsy one day I came across little felt mustaches on sticks - that people could hold up to their faces... anywhoo it gave me the idea to paint mustaches on the glasses!

I simply went to Google Images & found a pattern for a cute mustache. Copied it onto my trusty freezer paper & cut out the image with my Exacto knife. I used a glue stick to adhere the stencil to the glass - it held it snug, but was easy to peel away because of it tackiness when the paint had dried. And WaHla!!!! We have cute little mustache glasses for my cute little men! They LOVE them by the way & we use them every afternoon for our after school smoothies! Somehow the glasses have magical powers.... because they make the boys not notice the spinach that is in their smoothies! They are to busy pulling funny faces with their mustaches to notice the green things floating in the glass! Hee! Hee! We as mothers have to do anything we can!

*** If & When you want to make your own little glasses... make sure you get the right paint! I bought what the clerk told me to the first time.... grrrrr.... and it was not the right stuff. Washed right off in the dishwasher. So, make sure you get a permanent/waterproof paint.

Valentines Crush

O.k. SERIOUSLY how cute is this! I think the boys will be handing these out to their special little Valentines this year! (Sam's Club has a case of them right now for $11) Photo & Idea from Design Aglow:
 http://designaglow.com/design/photo-design-project-valentines-day/

The First Step...

The first step on the road to recovery is to admit that you have a problem. I have a problem. I am becoming my Father.... (It is ok to laugh right now - I laugh about it!). When I was growing up my Dad would always come home and say "Moalee, Albertson's has chicken on sale." Or "Moalee, Smith's is having a case lot sale." Or "Moalee, Albertson's has their turkey breasts on sale." I think you get the point!

Well, here is my confession... I am totally addicted to the weekly sales ads from the grocery stores! I LOVE Tuesday's because they come in the mail on Tuesday's! McKay always gets our mail & is heart broken if I get it. So, on Tuesday's I sneak out and get the ad's and leave whatever else there is for him to get! I Know, I know I am sounding a little crazy right now! But, it only gets worse! I surf the ad's and then I call my Dad to ask him if they are good buys!!! Only on the meat... he doesn't quite care about the mayonnaise sale! My problem is that when spiral ham's go on sale I can't just buy one or two... no, I had to buy six! Yes, you read that right! I have 6 ham's in my freezer right now! Or, when 25 lb boxes of frozen chicken breasts go on sale I have to buy two!!! Do you know how much chicken 50 lbs of chicken is!!! I almost died when I called James at work & said "James, Macey's has their chicken on sale... will you stop and pick it up on your way home - I don't want them to sell out"!  I am my Father!!! Or how about this - Lee's was having a sale on their Tri-Tip roasts & those just happen to be our favorite roasts! But, you could only buy 2 per customer. The sale went every Saturday for a month... I went every Saturday for a month & even made James go on a couple of the Saturday's to! I told you it was going to get worse! Whew, it feels good to get this out! I just feel very vulnerable if my freezer's are not stocked! And I have a really hard time paying $15 for a roast when I can get the same exact one for $8 a piece on sale!

So, my kid's LOVE Stephen's Candy Cane hot chocolate! And I always stock up on it at Sam's Club during the Holiday's. But, I was at Walmart the other night and their individual packets that are normally over .50 cents a piece were on clearance for .11 cents. James was out in the car & I called him & asked him how many I should buy... he told me to buy everyone that they had left! I'm rubbing off on him! I just needed someone to give me a little support for putting 150 of them in my cart!!! McKay's eyes were popping out as I just continued to throw handful after handful in the cart! People were starting to stare! And it hit me in that moment that I am soooo my Father & I don't even care!!! But, now I need to figure out where to put all of this hot chocolate!