$9.75!

Does it REALLY cost that much to go see a movie!?! Well at least at my theater it does! I can't believe it! And I feel old when my sister and I are talking about remembering when it used to be $4.00. Wow. I just think that $9.75 is crazy!

Last night some of my lady friends and I went to dinner and a movie (wish I had a picture! camera is dead). It was the most fun. We went to see When in Rome.




It was an overall cute movie and weird at some points! It is rated PG-13. I have recently taken to reading Plugged In Online movie reviews. I really want to be in the practice and knowing and caring about movie content for when my girls watch movies. There most likely will be negative aspects to most movies but reading the reviews and being prepared will help me to share what is actually biblically correct verses worldly philosophy. I think movies can be a great way to talk and have spiritual conversations with your kids. This is a short synopsis of Plugged Ins review, "When in Rome is a silly, predictable, occasionally sweet and relatively clean romcom. It's refreshing to see a romance not terminate under the sheets. But while the film doesn't overemphasize sex, it errs in another way—underemphasizing marriage, or at least its sanctity and sacredness."

I would recommend this movie to you tho. It is a 100% bona fide chic flick!! Grab some girl friends or your sister or mom and head to the movies! If you can afford it!!!

There is always something!

I can never have everything I need it seems like! If I have diapers then I need wipes. If I have formula then I need cereal or babyfood. Or maybe I need baby bath but if I have that then I probably need lotion. Why can't all these things run out at one time so I don't have to make a bazillion trips to target!?! And that is just the baby and toddler stuff! So when you add in my personal items... then there really is ALWAYS something outstanding that I need to get from target.

Not a whole ton to blog about these days because we have pretty much been stuck in all week due to illness. We all got a cold but poor Darby seemed to get hit the worst with it! She was awful. She has NEVER been so sad or sick. She ended up getting an ear infection which explains all of that! So she is on antibiotic now and def. seems to be doing much better today. I have been semi-productive while stuck in and have done some much needed cleaning so that is a bonus.

I am looking for some creative ideas for old formula cans. Since Carson went to formula I have been saving the cans and now I just need to nail down exactly what I want to do with them! I get the target brand and it is a great can bc it has a solid white top...so neutral! Any ideas?

LoVe My NeW bLoG!!!

My friend Carissa is awesome! Look at this blog....Isn't it great!?! She designed it for me and it was so close to not happening bc once she practically had it all designed, her computer got a virus that nearly killed it. BUT thankfully she was able to nurse it back to life and rescue my blog design! Thank you, thank you Carissa for making my blog so fabulous! You are the best. I don't think blogging will ever be the same again = ). If you notice I have a button now! Go ahead and take it and put it on your blog...cuz after all she did work so hard at making it!

okay...

It was my ear. I know I think I led yall on to believe it was something more crazy with how dramatic I was. We were just at the mall and I stopped in piercing pagoda and did it. Nothing TOO crazy!

What did I get pierced???

Ha ha I love the suspense I am creating! So I am just wanting to see what you think... I got a piercing this past weekend (I know I am so crazy). What do you think I did?


My nose??? I do LOVE India!


My belly button??? Since I had to take mine out when I got prego with Darby!


My ear cartiledge??? Which I also had done along time ago!


Or my lip??? To tap into my inner punk!

Lets see what you think! Don't be scared.

Fun times in Raleigh!

Oh man. Me and my sister have been in Raleigh since yesterday and we are having a good time. It's just a girl trip...Me, Carson and Darby met up with Amanda (my sis) and Claire. We decided Raleigh because it is exactly half way bw where we live and she lives. It is also a big city with FUN SHOPPING! We leave tomorrow and so far our trip has been fun but exhausting. It is hard to sleep if one baby wakes up and then the other regularly throughout the night! But we are surviving! Barely though, it was a rough day on the road for us! We could have probably gotten into 500 wrecks but God did spare us from every one! This morning we went to get the girls pictures taken at Portrait Innovations for "Valentine's Day" also for fun and we were just intending to get the $10 package special with one pose of all three girls...well we have the CD so needless to say, that did not happen! Here are some pics we got and I am saving one to show you on Valentine's Day bc I want it to be a surprise for some of my family readers!

My New Doo

Got my hair cut wenesday. I make myself laugh because I to Jennifer (my hair girl) when I got there I didn't think I wanted to get it cut just the color and then when I sat down with wet hair I decided to get bangs. How did I go from no cut to total change that quickly I don't know. I am glad though. It is fun to have a change. Here is my self photo of the new doo. This was right after I got it done. I did my hair myself for the first time this morn and I still liked it. So this is a sucess story!

So much more!

On Monday I had one of my most favorite Mommy days so far. My sister Halley (holla) watched baby Carson and Darby and I had the whole morning together. If you don't already know....we went shopping for dance clothes and shoes! It was great. She was so thrilled. We got her a leotard, tights, a CUTE skirt, ballet shoes and tap shoes. How fun!?! The we went to eat lunch at one of our favorites, Your Pie, a pizza chain that is a Moe's franchise and it is delish! It is a highlight for Darby because of the spinning Coburg cow right near the restraunt. After that we popped into Carolina Girls to see if we could score a great bag for her to carry her dance shoes to class in and I bought her her very own, very first Vera Bradley bag! It is actually a purse but on her it is a bag. It is great! Our time was THE MOST FUN (you know from Shag, the movie).

Tuesday, she had her first dance class! She loved it! We pulled up and another little girl was walking in and she said, "LOOK, there is another ballerina like me!". She was so excited. Loves it!


Pics are from my camera phone...sorry they are so bad!



You saw from my last post how utterly adorable baby Carson is and, this side of heaven moments don't get a whole lot better than my time with Darby yesterday. I can't help but think though...Life is SO much more than this. I heard a song on the radio by Kutless and it said, "Life is so much more than what your eyes are seeing". What a sobering reminder, that this is NOT our home. I read this on Monday also in Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon, comparing here with eternity in heaven, "Here, rest is only partial. There, it is perfect. Here, Christians are always unsettled; they feel that they have not yet attained. There, all are at rest; they have attained the summit of the mountain; they have ascended to the bosom of their God. They cannot go higher. Here my best joys bear "mortal" on their brow; my fair flowers fade; my dainty cups are drained to dregs; my sweetest birds fall before Death's arrows; my most pleasant days are shadowed into nights; and the flood tides of my bliss subside into ebbs of sorrow; but there, everything is immortal; the harp abides unrusted, the crown unwithered, the eye undimmed, the voice unfaltering, the heart unwavering and the immortal being is wholly absorbed in infinite delight. Happy day! happy! when mortality shall be swallowed up by life, and the Eternal Sabboth shall begin."

I can't wait for this day, and I know it is coming faster than I can understand bc 10 years, 40 years, 80 years... are all faster than a milisecond compared to the timespan of eternity, and I know that is where I will be when I die, face to face with my Savior. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, I know it is not based on what I do, and for that I will be eternally thankful because I am capable of no good thing. I know I don't deserve for God to even consider me but I know that Jesus' blood shed on the cross covers all my crappiness and I don't know why and I don't know how God can love ME so much but I know He does because of the empty tomb. I am SO thankful for my sweet glimpses of heaven in Darby and Carson but I know that even those can not compare! I can not wait. I KNOW that life is SO much more that what my eyes are seeing.

Yay for Carson!!!!

Today Carson turns 8 months old! She is doing great! For those who know about her kidney reflux...that hasn't been anymore of a problem. I give her a small dose of an antibiotic everyday (or almost) to prevent infection. She has gotten to be quite a big girl over the past 2 months. She is sooo cute! She crawls, and still in a mixture of various methods. She doesn't mind as long as she gets where she is going. And that she does! That girl is determined! I will all the time here her grunting and turn to see that she is trying to get over something to get to something else. She also for the first time the other day pulled up to her knees...like not to a stand but on her knees. She is crazy. She LOVES her big sis Darby. Here are couple videos I took on my phone of her most favorite activities lately:




She loves to take a bath with Darby! I just started letting them take one together and Darby loves it just as much!

I don't think you can hear the sound on the videos. If you could you could hear Carson squealing and jabbering. She says da da da all the time. She doesn't know what it means though. Did you know that da-da is the universal "first word" in any language? It is a developmental thing. You can never be to sure but I am pretty confident that her actual first word will be ma-ma...I will let you know tho!

I had to wake Carson up to give her her medicine last night because I forgot and here are a few pics for your enjoyment....she is like "mom, what in the world??"

I didn't think I was going to make it!

First, I didn't think I was going to make it to the outlet mall to take back some jeans I bought...but with a little deviation from our "normal" schedule I did!

Then I really didn't think I would make it to the gym...but I pushed myself and then to REALLY help motivate me I called and got my friend and neighbor Blythe to go too!

THEN I really really didn't think I would make it through the run on the treadmill. My running hasn't been consistent for several reasons and that was my first run in 2 weeks! On top of that, my furthest distance had been 2.5 miles. So we pressed the 5k button and started going. I made it but I am surprised.

THEN I really really really didn't think I was going to make it through getting the kids to bed. Darby had a rough day. She hardly listened to an ounce of what I asked her to do! So that makes for an EXHAUSTING day. Then, at bath time she bit Carson! Hard! She wasn't being mean though. I think she just had the idea and tried it! So what did I do? I bit her. Someone told my friend to do this with her child who was biting at school. I think it was effective. She was very remorseful.

Now we are on the other side of bedtime and I wish I didn't have to make it through taking a shower and doing my laundry that is out of control but...such is life = ).

Cuz Every Thing is a Lesser Thing!

So I L.O.V.E LOVE this song. Today I heard it on the radio and then I found out that it is sung by Chris Sligh...from American Idol! So exciting! Anyway, I just love it. It rocks...literally. It is the kind of song that makes me want to stand up and put my arms straight out to God and sing these words to him, proclaiming who he is and asking him to do these things in my heart! Here are the lyrics but you HAVE to just go buy the song on itunes!

I've had just enough of the spotlight
When it burns bright
To see how it gets in the blood
And I've tasted my share
Of the sweet life
And the wild ride
And found a little is not quite enough

I know how i can stray
And how fast my heart could change

Empty me
Of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition
And the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me
So i can be
Filled with you

Ive seen just enough of the quick buys
Of the best lies
To know how prodigals can be drawn away

I know how I can stray
And how fast my heart could change
Empty me
Of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition
And the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me
So I can be
Filled with you

Cuz everything is a lesser thing
Compared to you
Compared to you
Cuz everything is a lesser thing
Compared to you
So I surrender all

Empty me
Of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition
And the poison of my pride

Empty me
Of the selfishness inside
Every vain ambition
And the poison of my pride
And any foolish thing my heart holds to
Lord empty me of me
So I can be
Lord empty me of me
So I can be
Filled with you.
Filled with you
Empty me

Do You Know??

Do you know that India is the 2nd largest country in population (but it is actually a smaller country)?

Do you know that 60% of the worlds population is in Asia?

Do you know that India has the most unreached people for Christ?

These are rough statistics that I researched but I read that only 3 percent of the population in India are Christians. I also read that 73% of the Christians in India are Catholic. There are ALOT of unreached people for Christ in India.

When I look at India I see a beautiful people that God made in His own image who in the midst of a lot of struggle (poverty, etc) are desperately searching for life.

I've been wanting to adopt a child from India. I know it won't hardly put a dent in the poverty crisis that exist but it may be a start. so....

Do you know what is a good organization to go with? Compassion International or Gospel for Asia's Bridge of Hope?

I am leaning toward Bridge of Hope because I think all the money is used for the purpose of supporting the child. You know how you hear of organizations that by the time they take out administrative fees and what not then only a small percentage goes to the actual purpose of the donation? Anyway, blah blah blah. Any ideas?

Darby's First Trip to the Dentist!

It was time! 2 and half years old and we were off to the dentist for Darby's first visit. We went to Corner Stone Children's Dentistry which is where a dentist from church runs his practice. Dr. Paul Galloway is his name. It was a great experience. Darby did great, the hygienist did great, and Dr. Paul was great too. Darby got to pick out her toothpaste flavor. When the girl said what the choices were I knew exactly what she would pick and she did....CHOCOLATE! How incredibly disgusting does that sound. But hey, whatever she wants to make it through the trip to the dentist. Darby did not enjoy the little thing that blows air, that had her up off the chair and heading to the door but we calmed her back down. She didn't do perfect but much better than it could have been and I was sooo proud of her. Here are some pictures taken on my phone!






I can't believe how big she is getting....There goes another milestone.

How fabulous is...

A shower after not bathing for 2 days?

A bagel and coffee in the morning?

Clean sheets and shaved legs at the same time?

A clean house?

Starbucks?

Visiting other cities Targets?

My 2 year old who asks to pray when we are tucking her baby sister in?

A good book series in the mail due to arrive in 3 days?

This is just a small list of some fabulous things that I have gotten to enjoy very recently or will be in the very near future. If you are wondering what book series I am talking about it is the Twilight Saga... I caved! I haven't had even the slightest desire to read them bc I am not into the vampire senario, but I have had a couple friends tell me they are so good and I trust them so we will see! My books are arriving on the 11th so if you don't hear from me for a while you will know why ; ). I love reading a good fiction series but I don't do it too often because what will happen is I will get so hooked and I won't do anything else until they are all read. I am looking forward to it. It has been a long time since I read my last series.


I will let you know how they turn out!

Due to the fact that I will be spending most of my time reading and some minor technical "challenges", I am getting my friend Carissa to redesign my blog for me. She is launching a new blog designing business and I will have to be passing that information on to you all. Happy Friday night to you!

Uh-Oh...

So you might notice a few changes to my blog.... enjoy them while they last because I am about to revamp my blog. Hopefully, I hope I am not speaking to soon. This is assuming I can accomplish the task! Still some work to be done but I purchased some "blogwear" from Scrap Matters.
I hope this one will last me longer. I am really excited tho.

Check out my new signature at the bottom of this post. So exciting. Learned how from the Sneaky Momma Blog Design blog. I also added a post divider and learned how from the shabby blog tutorial.

I am going to be really annoyed if these links don't work. I have the worst time with them. If you are thinking about blogging...BEWARE, it can become an obsession. I call myself a blogaholic. But I really think that once I get my design the way I want it then I will be much less involved! It is a fun hobby for me though for now.

A Time to Celebrate!

You might ask, "What's the occasion!?!"

I finally got a comment from someone else besides Carissa! It is so ridiculous that this put such a big smile on my face! I mean this whole post is me making fun of myself! This blog could almost be my third child. If you know me I LOVE accessorizing. So what is the point of a blog if not to just accessorize a page!?! So anyway on that note...I am seriously considering purchasing a premade blog design. I like mine okay it it took me having to learn so much just to make it what it is but you know what I like about other blog designs???? The bigger space in the middle. This may not make any sense but I mean the background isn't so wide and the middle section is bigger. When I go from other blogs to this one then I feel like mine looks squished. Anyway, I am def on the hunt for a cute premade blog design that fits me. ORRRRR maybe I should just add a signature and post divider and see if that satisfies my need to accessorize for right now. What to do, what to do?? Thanks Kellie for your much needed comment because I thought well I could just call Carissa and tell her all of this stuff! Ha ha, I am really just kidding. But if you do follow you can let me know by "following" me or dropping me a line every once and a while. I should also give my sis Amanda a special thank you for signing up to "follow" me a few days ago....just to see the third follower made me smile too. It makes me feel like my blog has a purpose and is growing = ). I just hope that you don't notice what hour I am writing this blog because then you may be concerned about how much of a purpose this blog might be to me ; ).

Side-Tracked

Okay I totally got side tracked when I sat down to write this blog 2.5 hours ago. First it was baby Carson, poor thing. She is going through something. Teeth maybe, cold maybe, or maybe adjusting from our travel this past weekend. So I went in and gave her a bit of tylenol and rocked her. I rocked her and rocked her (dad, if you are reading this...that chair was so worth the money). I didn't want to let go! I thought about her being a teenager and not fitting in my arms anymore and that made me hold her tighter to keep her from growing. I prayed for her for and for her future and that God would be glorified in her life and that He would call her to faith in Him ALONE at a young age. I am not a good sit stiller but I couldn't let go. When I was holding her I could just feel the JOY seeping into me like through osmosis or something ; ). I love her she is so beautiful.

Then I sat back down to write my totally different blog than this and went to get a link to a blog I discovered and got side tracked there reading her blogs and stories. You can read for yourself here at Katies Keepers. An amazing story of faith in a difficult time. I cried and cried but am encouraged.

I have been guilty of trying to figure out God recently. I've been trying to figure out why God does what he does and trying to predict even what he is doing in my life instead of just patiently waiting in the desert for Him. If one thing is for sure nothing THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN is permanent. Our hope has to be in THE One and Only the Great I AM.

Psalm 46:10 "Be still (beth) and know that I AM God"

He doesn't just leave us stranded though.

Isaiah 58:11 "The Lord will guide you always"

God goes before us (the Alpha) is with us now and will forever always be (the omega)-What great hope!

We went on a trip to Jacksonville this past weekend to visit my mom (and brother) and here are some pics from our trip!
Darby the Mermaid!

This was a joke bc I told him we could send this pic to his girlfriend to show her what he can do ; )
I'm gonna gitch gitcha gitcha