Show and Tell Friday

One of my favorite blogs that I love to read is Kelli’s House. She always has great recipes to try and fun craft ideas. She has great tips on entertaining and how to make you house into a cozy home! She also is a bargain shopper and finds great little “knick knacks” at thrifts stores and yard sales. If you know me…I am a yard sale girl! Anyway, every Friday she hosts a Show and Tell. I have always wanted to participate, but haven’t done so until today…

Welcome to “Show and Tell Friday!” Do you have something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, or a treasured collection. Look around your home for something to share; dig through those boxes in your closet if you have to! Share photos and the story that goes with your special item.

This is my Grandmothers silver tea set. She received it as a wedding when she married my grandfather 53 years ago. She passed it to me as a special gift. It’s a true treasure to me.

I proudly display it on the book shelf in my living room.

I know my grandparents read my blog, so this is for them… I love you both so much and I’m so thankful that God blessed me with such wonderful and godly grandparents!

My favorite room in the house...

Kelly from Kelly's Korner invited us to post about our favorite room in our house. I decided to play along.

My kitchen is definitely my favorite room in my house.

It's not because I love to cook though!
I guess it's my favorite room because I decorated it with ROOSTERS! As long as I can remember I have always wanted a rooster kitchen. I'm not really sure why, but I LOVE roosters. Unfortunately, I don't have anymore room for another feathered friend, so my obsession with roosters has died down a little. I still get excited when I'm out shopping and I see something rooster, but I know I will have no place for him. Now I just get to enjoy the ones I already have!

Here are a few of my favorite roosters from my collection...

This one sits on my island

My rooster plate and my rooster salt and pepper shakers...

I found this trio of roosters at a yard sale!

Thanks for visiting my kitchen!

The ATTACK of the Canadian Geese

Tuesday the boys and I went to the park. I have written before about how much my boys LOVE to throw rocks in the lake there. They wanted to head straight for the water before even playing on the playground. So off to the water we went. It took a while to reach our destination because we had to stop and collect our “throwin’ rocks” on our way to the water. Finally we reached the water’s edge and the boys began throwing each and every rock we found into the water.

We had to have been there for about 10 minutes, when all of a sudden, swarms of geese began to swim our way. As they got closer some of them took off out of the water and began to FLY toward us. I’m pretty sure they thought we were throwing food in the water. Well, we stood there for a minute to see if they would leave us alone since we didn’t have any food, just some rocks. No way! I think that just made them more upset. They were HUNGRY!!!!! I think they were even considering eating Riley. They started to come out of the water and chase us!!!!

I tried to be brave, I really did, but I just couldn’t help it! I was SCARED!!!!! I scooped Riley up in my arms and told Corban to RUN!!!!!!!!!!!! We ran as fast as we could up to the top of the hill. The geese followed for a moment, but then I guess they decided we didn’t look that yummy anyway and went on there way! I think we may have to find a new place to practice our rock throwin'!?!

Memorial Day

I hope everyone had a wonderful LONG… weekend! Don’t you wish every weekend was three days?!? I think that’s just the right amount of time to be productive and get things done and also have some time to rest and relax. That’s just what our weekend consisted of-a little work and a little play.

We had BEAUTIFUL weather on Memorial Day! I mean it was perfect. We spent most of the day enjoying our neighborhood pool! The water is still a little on the cold side. Too cold for me, but everyone else seemed to enjoy themselves. My sisters, Kelly and Allison, spent the day hanging out with us too! After swimming all day, we headed over to my parents house for a cookout. What a great way to kick-off the summer!

Here are a few pics from our day at the pool!

Corban enjoyed squirting us with the water gun!

This is the three story water slide...

Here comes Kelly down the slide!

Corban enjoyed the lazy river

Everyone had fun just chillin' in the lazy river

My sweet Riley

Pizza and Pj's Picnic Party

Friday night Shane had a church meeting after work. I was planning to go with him, but the boys have had little colds all week. Even I picked up a cold this week. I decided the best thing to do was to stay home with the boys. Since we were on our own for dinner we decided to have a pizza and pj's picnic. I cooked a frozen pepperoni pizza and we ate it upstairs in the playroom. (In our pajamas of course!!!!!!)

After our pizza we made our infamous milkshakes. We had to make a run to the store earlier that afternoon to pick up so more ice cream. It would seem we have been eating a lot of ice cream around here lately ;). The boys picked out M&M, cookie dough, ice cream (YUM) and I decided to tried a new flavor called Fried ice cream. Boy was it good! Taste's like apple pie!!!!

After our bellies were full with such a nutritious meal of pizza and milkshakes, we snuggled on the couch to watch a movie.

What a fun night!

I just started reading the book, “ What happens when women say Yes to God!” by Lysa Terkeurst. I am reading this for my neighborhood ladies Bible study. I LOVE Lysa Terkeurst, so it was no surprise that I am loving this book. This book is the new expansion of her previously titled book "Radically Obedient, Radically Blessed", which I loved.

Here are a few excerpts from her book that really convicted me and touched my heart…

“You see we have become so familiar with God yet so unaware of Him. We make the mysterious mundane. We construct careful reasons for our rules and sensible whys for our behavior. All the while our soul is longing for a richer experience-one that allows us to escape the limits of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell and journey to a place of wild, wonder, and passion.

Women who say yes to God will see life like few others. They are drawn in and embraced by a love like no other. They don’t have to wait until the next time they’re in church to experience God because they sense God’s presence all around them, all through their day. Instead of merely walking through the motions of life, they pursue the adventure of the moment-by-moment divine lessons and appointments God has in store for them. They expect to see God, to hear from Him, and to be absolutely filled by His peace and joy-and, therefore, they do and they are!

God, I want to see You. God, I want to hear You. God, I want to know You. God, I want to follow hard after You. And even before I know what I will face today, I say yes to You!

More about our weekend

Saturday evening our church hosted a fun family night featuring “JillyBean”. Jillybean is a master storyteller. She used ventriloquism, puppetry and illusions as ways to convey the powerful gospel message. Preschoolers and grandparents alike were all enjoying the show and laughing out loud. It was a fun time!

Corban and Riley with Jillybean

Sunday night Corbans children’s choir preformed at church. They sang “Every Promise in the Book is Mine”. Corban was so nervous about singing. He had anticipated performing all week long. We tried our best to ensure him that he would be fine, but he was not easily convinced. Sunday evening, we had to be at church a few minutes early so the choir could practice before performing. By this point my poor Corban was so nervous. His eyes swelled with tears and he was complaining his tummy hurt. Shane and I both consoled him and then a sweet lady friend of ours took him over to the side and encouraged him too. Sometimes it takes someone other than mommy or daddy. Well, Corban did get up on stage with his choir, but he did NOT sing. No, he did not open his mouth one little bit. At least he wasn’t crying. I know this was a learning experience and maybe next year he will feel a little more comfortable. I am just proud of him for getting up there! After they finished singing, they went back to their room for an end of the year party.

Shane and I helped out with the party.

Corban and one of his "best buddies", Jack, with their choir awards!

Riley had fun at the party too!

Friday evening we celebrated the CHAMP Sports Outreach Program at our church with an "end of season" finale. Corban has played soccer for CHAMP’s for the past two seasons. We had the opportunity to hear and meet Tunch Ilkin, former NFL Pro Bowl player from the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Muhsin Muhammad, Pro Bowl player from our Carolina Panthers. We heard their wonderful testimonies and then had a chance to meet both of them and get an autograph! It was a great evening!

The boys (and our friend Amy) with Tunch Ilkin and Muhsin Muhammad

Saturday, Corban had his final soccer game of the season. He LOVES soccer and is so sad that this was his last game. However, he will be attending a soccer camp this summer at church, so he is looking forward to that! After the game, Shane and I decided to surprise the boys and take them to the park. We live minutes from one of the best parks in town. We spent the rest of our morning playing at the park, hiking on the trails, and throwing rocks in the lake. I think my boys could have spent the rest of the day just throwing rocks, but as noon approached so did our appetites. We headed over to Mario’s pizza.

We LOVE us some Mario’s. We sat outside and enjoyed a delicious ham and pineapple pizza (our family’s favorite kind). After Mario's we headed home to make some YUMMY chocolate and banana milkshakes.

Too wash down that pizza of course =)!!!

PJ's and Movies

As commander and chief of this household I, hereby, do declare that today, Friday May 16^th, 2008, is and forever shall be known as Pajama and Movie Day!!!

Yes, that’s right! Today, I have decided that we are staying in our pj’s all day. We have no errands that need immediate attention, laundry is done, and no where to be until this evening. The weather outside is dark and rainy and with nothing on our agenda, we are staying home and snuggling on the couch while we watch movies. Sounds like a GREAT day to me!

Gotta run. Corban has picked out a movie and is waiting for me. What movie you may wonder?

Rescue Hero's.

Discovery Place

Yesterday, we headed uptown for a visit to Discovery Place! My youngest sister, Allison, went with us. We spent the morning touring the museum! The boys loved the preschool playroom.

They especially loved the water table.
They could have spent all day just in that one room.

We visited the "Rain Forest" and saw lots of birds, turtles, and snakes!

We enjoyed the dinosaur exhibit too, although Riley wasn’t too sure about them! One of the highlights was “Rat Basketball”! Yes, we watched two rats play basketball. So fun!

After spending the morning at the museum, we met Daddy for a quick lunch at Showmars! It was a real treat to have lunch with Shane. We don’t go uptown much, so when we do, Shane tries to sneak away from work for a while to join us for lunch! What a fun day!

Board Games

Corban LOVES board games! He would play then ALL day long!As long as you are willing to sit and play-he would play with you!?! My sister Allison got the new High School Musical II game last week. Corban couldn’t wait for a chance to play it with her. I think when they did play; they played it 7 times in a row. No kidding!

This weekend Shane took Corban to Target and let him pick out a new board game (as if we don’t have enough already!) Anyway, Corban picked out Monopoly Junior-Disney Edition. They played it the minute they got home from the store.

The other afternoon Corban challenged me to a mean game of Candy Land! I LOVE Candy Land, so I decided to take the challenge. We had a great time. Corban especially did …he beat me ALL THREE TIMES we played! Fair and square! No mommy help. He thought that was great!

Some of the other games we play are Guess Who and Connect Four. Corban LOVES both of those too. I remember playing many of these same games with my sisters and brothers growing up so it is so much fun getting to play them with my little guy now!

My Scrapbooks are HERE!!!

Our scrapbooks (for the birthparents) have arrived! I wasn’t expecting them until sometime next week. What a surprise it was to pull up in the driveway this afternoon and see a box sitting by my front door! I couldn’t wait to get it inside and open it up. I was not disappointed! I love the way the books turned out. I used Creative Memories (free) down loadable software to create our book. It was so easy and I am thrilled with the results. It looks just like a story book. The pictures are crystal clear. I have to give a shout out to my sweet friend, and Creative Memories consultant, Terri !! Thanks Terri for all your help! I couldn’t be more pleased with the results. If you’re like me and you have hundreds of pictures on your computer, I’m convinced that digital scrapbooking is the way to go. I will definitely be making more books for our family.

"Goodmorning Riley"!

As a mommy, I look forward to seeing my kid’s precious little faces each morning. Riley normally get’s up first, around 7:30am. Now that he is in a “big boy bed”, he can get up on his own. He comes to find me right away. I am normally in my bathroom finishing getting ready for the day. Each morning is the same routine. He stumbles in the bathroom groggily, chewing and dragging his favorite blue blankie behind him. He has “bed head” and still has that sleepy look in his eyes. He comes up to me and grabs my leg. The first words out of his mouth are a muffled “Hi mommy” because his blankie is still in his mouth! It’s so sweet!! I look forward to his greeting every morning!!

It's a..............................................

BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No…not me! My sister, Bethany, (aka “B”) and her husband, Matt, just found out yesterday afternoon that they are expecting a little boy this October! They think they have a name picked out too, but aren’t quite set on it yet. We are so excited and happy for them. We can’t wait to meet this little guy!!!!

My sister "B" and her husband Matt...

Congratulations guys!!!!!

Crazy weekend!!!

It seems like my post for every Monday is entitled “Crazy Weekend!” That seems to be all we have around this house are busy, busy, weekends. This one was no different. I long for a relaxing weekend where we don’t have anywhere to go and I can just stay home in my pj’s all day long. I can dream can’t I!?!

Anyway, Friday my good friend Meghan came over with her two kids for a playdate. Meghan and I have been friends since the seventh grade. We were in church youth group together. Boy, do we have a lot of fun memories! We have remained good friends and have kept in touch even though her family moved out of state when we were in the ninth grade. She now lives right around the corner from me. Meghan has two children and is pregnant with number three. I am so excited for her! Anyway, we had a good time chatting and catching up while our kiddos played.

Saturday, Corban had a soccer game at 9:00am. He played really hard and scored four goals. YEAH!!!!! After the game we ran a few errands and then headed home to clean up. We had a few couples over for dinner in order to plan some summer activities for the college group at church. (This is a new ministry that Shane and I are involved in.) As our friends were just about to arrive the main water pipe to our house burst in the front yard. Water was gushing EVERYWHERE!!!!!!!! Shane was scrambling to get it turned off. At first he had a very hard time figuring out how to shut it off. He did figure is out, but he had to shut off ALL the water for the entire house. This is really not good when you are having company for dinner. With no water, there are no flushing toilets, washing hands, or even a glass of water to drink. I actually had to go to my neighbor’s house to fill up two pitchers of water so we had it to drink. My friend Melanie’s husband Jeff, who is a professional landscaper, came over later that night to fix the pipe. He was a true life saver!!!!!

Sunday was a busy day too. We went to church. I am the two’s and three’s coordinator for our preschool Sunday school ministry. Sunday mornings are normally crazy. I run around making sure all our preschool rooms are staffed with volunteers and that everything runs smoothly. I am normally exhausted when I leave church in the afternoon. I did get a chance to run home and take a quick nap before heading back to the evening service at our church. After church, we hung out and played volleyball with the college group. That’s always fun!

Here's a pic of Corban and one of his very best friends, Tyler, after the game on Saturday…

Anyway… I hope you had a great weekend!

Update on our adoption...

People have been asking us…"So how’s the adoption process going?"…

I thought I would take a moment and update everyone on what’s been going on with our adoption. We finished our home study and it was submitted on March 31^st. It had to be reviewed and then we would need to schedule one final “interview” appointment with our agency. Well, we had our final “interview” on Tuesday afternoon and all went very well. We officially became a waiting family that same afternoon. YEAH!!!!!

At the appointment they looked over our scrapbook which I made to introduce us to potential birth families. They told me the changes and additions that needed to be made. I made those changes right when I got home from our appointment. I ordered our scrapbooks (3 of them) and they should be here soon. Why three!?! One our agency will keep one here, in the town where we live, and the other two will be sent to their satellite agencies. Meanwhile, birth families will be directed to our agencies website where they can browse and look at the waiting families. We sent in the pictures and information needed to go on the website so our family should be on there soon too.

So now what!?! Well…we wait, pray, and watch God work. This is the part of the whole process that I am most excited about. I know God will bring our precious daughter into our lives at just the right time. We have committed this adoption to Him and want nothing more than to praise Him every step of the way.

So…this is where we are today. Waiting! Waiting on God to work! This is a great place to be!!