oh to be soo cute...

( No picture to this post!  I think blogger changed how you are able to post a pic!  oh my goodness!  that isn't good.  from what I can tell I will have to put all my pics to photobucket first!  I already have no time!  uggg!)

Little Darby cracks me up!  She is turning 3 really soon and I can't believe how fast time flies!  Just thought I would share some cute stories from today.  There were three I wanted to share and I am racking my brain hard to remember the third one but I can't!  So annoying.  I thought on purpose...I have to remember these and I will blog about them.

Today when I picked up up from school we were talking about letters.  Her new favorite thing to do is find on signs that we drive by D's for Darby, C's for Carson and B's for Beth (she really enjoys the fact that she knows my name is Beth).   Anyway, we started going through peoples names that we know and I was asking which letter went with their names.  I asked her about Jackson her friend, she said "Jackson must be J".  Yes!  I asked her a couple more and she really didn't know them and I asked about our neighbor Drew (Mr. Drew, her friends daddy).  I asked first what letter goes with his name and then I proceeded to make the D sound, "da, da".  She then exclaims, "double u! (w)".  I just smiled and laughed in my head from the cutest.

She had dance class tonight.  We usually eat a Moe's after dance.  We love it.  She asked to go there but I said, "no we are going to eat at home tonight".  Then when we rode past the grocery store she said we needed to go to it.  I said, "no we don't need to go, mommy's out of money!".  She said, "you are out of money?"  "that's okay we can buy some more".  First of all wouldn't that be nice and second of all I could fall to the ground over the sheer cuteness of her thoughts!

OH!  I just remembered the third thing!  Yay!

Tonight I was getting her dressed for bed.  I was putting away her laundry that I had folded and then I got out her jammies and she said, "thanks mommy, I am so proud of you for getting my jammies".  Oh she is a pistol I tell you!  Lol.  I think she picked that up bc I have tried to be really super intentional about affirming her and rewarding her when she shares or uses good manners and etc.  Today we had a "sharing" lesson and soon after that she offered a favorite toy of hers (the one she had a hard time sharing the first time) to her sister to play with and I rewarded her with verbal praise of course but also candy.  She LOVES candy.  I love staying home with them.  I am not so sure that it will last as long as I had intented to but for now I love being able to teach them.  I get to share why we should share...and that of course it makes Carson (or whoever) happy, it makes mommy happy, but most importantly it makes God happy and that in turn will make Darby happy.  I don't ever want to press upon my kids my own standards of "goodness" but instead I want to instill a healthy fear of God in which out of reverant submission and awe of his splender (don't usually use that word, weird) and thankfulness for what he has given and done for us they are compelled to follow His commands and live for Him and not themselves.

"Oh God, please help me in guiding my children.  Please help me to instill a faith in my girls that will be passed down from generation to generation.  Apart from you I am incapable of accomplishing such things.  Lord by your grace let my children choose the narrow path that leads to life.  Amen."

Question....I need your help

Can you wear a black dress to a 5:30 wedding on May 1st?

My sis gave me this dress and I would love to wear it but it is hard hard hard for me to be okay with the idea of wearing black to a wedding.  Is this something I made up in my head as a bad thing?  I know ppl do it.  Don't they?  After all I do think my sis bought it for a wedding.  But I think it is supposed to be more formal if the wedding is at 6.  Anyway just wondered what yall thought.  In order to not have to buy another dress I have that dress option and a linen dress which are like totally opposite in dressy factor.  I really think the linen one is too casul it would be better for like a 3 or 4 oclock wedding ; ).  I do have two other dresses that I COULD wear but I don't really want to.  To me they aren't weddingy enough. 

Are you freaking kidding me!?!?!?!?

So just doing some nightly computering and I had my TV on bc I watched some of American Idol.  Glee comes on afterward.  I caught it once before in pieces and from what I saw it was just a typical standard american show...Okay so they were singing Madonna's "Like a Virgin" and I peaked up from my computer.  Okay so it was three couples singing and doing some very seductive dancing and dramatizations or whatever you want to call it (telling a story to go with the song if you will).  One couple I didn't recognize, the other was a teacher relationship I think and the other were students in HIGH SCHOOL.  I think that is awful!  HIGH SCHOOL.  Really?  So the girl didn't end up going thru with "it" and I guess that is how they justify that being appropriate?  I don''t know.  We have come a long way from what was on in my younger days and my kids are only 1 and 3 (almost).  I am very concerned.

I try...

I try to blog more I really do.  I don't know when I will fully get back into the swing of things but I do still pop in on blogs here and there!  So I still have yet to finish posting my easter pics and beach vacay pics...  I am getting there...soon I hope. 

Right now tho I was wanting to write about something on my mind.  A couple that I know of just had their four year old daughter die.   I can't even begin to imagine.  The parents although they are suffering extremely are my kind of heros tho.  They are thankful and hopeful for their daughter and praise and honor God's precious name during such a hard circumstance.  It just reminds me though of 2 things.  One is how futile life is.  It is so short and unpromised and even if we are allowed to live until we are old we still get old and with that comes brittle bones, wrinkles, gray hair, back pain and etc (shoot some of us young folk even have some of those things).  Our hope is not in this lifetime.  Thank you Jesus for that!  I only have this one futile life to live though and I do want to live it with purpose and dignity.   I don't want to be careless with my relationships or decisions or seek to satisfy my every desire with material things.   I don't want to be shallow with a feel good surfacey image but hollow on the inside.  Oh Holy Spirit come be with me, and Lord forgive me for when I find life in things outside of you, and protect me. (sorry had to pray for a sec).   The second thing it made me consider is how gracious God is to have given me my 2 sweet girls and with good health for now.    I know that God could take them away tomorrow if he chooses to allow that (via cancer or a car wreck and etc...) and that is a sobering reminder to be so thankful for such blessings.  It is also a call to be diligent and faithful in my responsiblities and care of them.  I wish yall could meet them.  They are the sweetest things.  I had a babysitter tonight and she has been here several times but she was just like they are just such sweet and happy girls.  It is the truth!  I can truly say that there aren't many things other than my sweet children that bring me such joy.  It is an honor and a priviledge to wake up each day and be with them.  They are not my source of life just sweet blessings from my Father.

So here are the eggstravaganza pics...better late than never ; )

Can you blog from a Blackberry?

I know I have been a little M.I.A. lately.  I have just been rediculously busy and I have NO energy left at the end of the day!  Today was stressful fo rme!  I lost my phone!!!  I mean what an inconvience!  It is sooo hard not to have your phone and if you loose then you can't transfer your numbers over and you loose your SIM card...so frustrating! 

So anyway, after retracing my steps and calling some places I ended up going to get a new phone!  I got a blackberry and its kind of a celebration of finally joining the smartphone internet on your phone crowd.  It's kind of exciting.  But I didn't want to buy a new phone!  I was so frustrated at the cost of it, fortunately I was up for an upgrade, but still.  I wish I had an old phone that I could have just used while I researched and made a decision on what phone to get and etc but I don't so it was either have no phone or go get one!

So I did, but then I found my other one!  It literally must have sprouted some legs and hid itself where it was bc I had NO IDEA how it got where it was.  So now I am trying to decide....do I return the new one?  But it is so fun!  Or keep the old one?  Ahhhh.... I looked up my blog on the blackberry and I can get it and all of yalls too but it does take awhile.  I can even leave comments!  so fun...  I doubt I will do it from my phone often bc of the time but it will be something I will def do if I am waiting in a doc office (and for some reason don't have kids to run after)! 

Is this not delish!?!

I'll have to post more as soon as I get my pics on my computer!  And I still need to post some more easter pics.....story of my life.  Always running behind ; )

What does it take....

for you to consider your house clean?

Pefection?

or slightly less?

or a lot less?

well I can tell you for sure that my standards have changed dramatically!

My house is a wreck right now.  Just getting back from out of town leaves alot to unpack and put away and I didn't leave my house in horrible condition but not great either.  So anyway.  I know I still have more easter pics to share but I cleaned my downstairs and was just thinking on this subject. 

If my floors are clean I am happy.  Mopped and vacummed I am good no matter what other mess is around.  Usually too tho if my floors are clean I am more motivated to clean the other stuff.  I just bought myself one of these bad boys....I love it bc you can just throw the mop head in the washer and I feel much cleaner that way.  It is a Libman wonder mop.

and this is the vacumm I love.  Researched it on consumer reports after I got in a new vacuum wanting mood a few years ago bc the kirby ppl came to my door.  They sold me on the product but not the price.  This vacuum got the whole 5 stars as the kirby did for suction and it is WAY less.  I comes in bagless and bag versions but I got the back bc with my old bagless I kept having to change the stinkin filter and it got annoying and expensive.  It's a Kenmore Progressive.  It has lights that light up red, orange, yellow and green to show dirt..it is amazing...truly.

Anyway- just thought I would share this little bit of useless information with you...  I keep wanting to do the Show Us Your Life friday but I forget about it....so maybe next time.  I think cleaning tips might have been a recent one so maybe this can just count as a late one :-).

1 of 2

Yay!  I think I got them all uploaded!  Here are a lot of pictures of our Easter.
Still to come are pics from the eggstravaganza on Sat.

This is the Easter Bunny spread...

They got alot of nic-naks and beach towels with their names embroidered.  Carson got a pool float and Darby got the memory game.  So we went to the beach on good Friday and I let them wear their cute new bathing suits...I couldn't hold off for Easter!

This next pic is blurry but I could resist!

Doesn't that picture make you just want to jump thru your computer screen and kiss her with those precious sleepy eyes!?!  Okay...maybe just me.

These pics are at home and ready for church! 

The next pictures are a couple from right before church.  I had these high hopes of getting these fabulous pictures but with the sun and the pollen and the ducks that stole all of their attention it totally didn't work out.

To tie you over!

You will never believe it but I have typed and uploaded a post 3 times now and then something happens with the internet and I lose everything!  I am at the beach on vacation and the internet signal is not always good!  So here is a little sweetness to tie you over!

Easter 2010

Well I am going to have to try again!  I was in the middle of upload a ton of pics and the internet shut off!  I am too tired to redo...So check back later! ; )

They didn't take His life...

He laid it down.

The same God that rose from out of the grave (yes! this really happened)

could have taken Himself right down off of that cross

but He chose to die for those who believe and follow Him.

Bc of His love and grace He freely and without merit poured out for us...

we don't have to be perfect to get to heaven.

Does that mean we can just go on sinning so that Grace can abound? (stole that from Paul)

Well lets see what His word saids...

Matthew 16:24-26  "If anyone would come after me (Jesus speaking), he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.  For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.  What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?"

Matthew 7:19  pay close attention this is Jesus speaking.  " Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them (talking about true followers of Jesus verses false prophets who do not teach the truth or some might teach part of the truth but not the whole truth).  Then in verse 21 and 22 he says "not everyone who says to me, ' Lord, lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven (so you can recognize Jesus as God and call him Lord he is saying and not enter into the kingdom of heaven (wow), but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 

Here is my concern...There are people who abuse the gospel of grace.  What an amazing gift we have in Jesus' death and ressurection, it was no small sacrifice.  But we can't make up our own rules.  We have to follow Him...we should be running in such a way to win the prize (1 cor. 9:24).  Whoaaa preaching to myself here! 

All I am saying is...Are you believing AND following Jesus?  If not why not?

Is it because you don't think you are that bad?
Is it bc you are not willing to give up your life to be made new (yes this may require some changes)?

This Easter what I really want myself and anyone who reads this to get is... yes it was Grace that brought Jesus to earth as a man and Grace that drove Him to the cross and Grace that he didn't stay dead but rose again!  Hallelujah Praise God!

But it is also Grace that is calling you (and me) right now to die to whatever earthly pleasures we cling to and tend to worship.  Thats calling you to humble yourself in your broken state and take up a new life IN Him (follow Him).  Thank God that we don't have to strive to be perfect anymore.  He bore the punishment for our inherit sin, He paid it all and we owe Him our lives.  Every day, every decision, every dollar, every gift, and etc...
Lets give it to Him this Easter whether it is for the first time or again. 

You have to forgive me bc I do tend to preach but I am so passionate about this and I care about your souls and I want the whole world to know His name.

Have a Happy and Glorious Easter!  I have more pictures to come of some of our festivities...here is a not very good sneak peak.