My sweet Greta

My sweet Greta girl. She is now totally blind. No light is getting through her eyes. She has been very sick for the past few weeks too. I will spare you the details, but this includes me waking up to a huge mess every morning.  I have been mad, disgusted, and frustrated by this whole situation. I have taken her to the vet, she is on 3 medications and prescription dog food. Caring for her takes a huge part of my day. She is only 10.

Now, I am just sad. 

I finally lost it this morning as I sat at the computer on this glorious sunny morning. I saw her sitting and looking out the window like she always does, but I realized she saw nothing. And that was it for me. I finally started crying. This dog was my first baby. I threw a first birthday party for her complete with a cake and gifts. She has been through so much with me. She has helped me welcome two babies into this world.  She has been everywhere with us. We are the annoying dog people who treat her like a human. She sleeps in our bed and she is welcome everywhere we go. She has been my girl for 10 years. I can't bear the thought of losing her, but I know it's coming.

"And tears come streaming down your face

When you lose something you can't replace

Lights will guide you home

And ignite your bones

And I will try to fix you"

Coldplay

My Thankful Post

At ages 5 and 8, I am still amazed by them. I wonder why God chose me to be the Mother to these two precious souls. I am so very blessed by them and they teach me far more than I will ever teach them. I am thankful for so much in my life, but these 2 are always at the top of the list.  

It's Football Time!!

JW took Will this past weekend to his very first UT football game. It was the perfect day, they had great seats, and they both had a blast. JW went to his first UT football game when he was 8 years old too, so he was really excited for Will to experience Neyland Stadium. (JW's first game was the 1982 Alabama game when the field was rushed and goal posts came down. Cincinatti game wasn't quite the same!)

 WHAT?? My babydog is old enough to play football?? How did this happen??

Well, at least it is just flag football, so no helmets or tackling is involved, but still....

Look at him there on the right with his game face on. He wouldn't smile for the camera, he is so funny. His first game was this past Saturday and he scored 2 touchdowns!! It was great. We were all kind of floored at his natural skill and how much he loves it. His coaches are great and it is a fun group of little boys.

This Mama is just pressing on.....slowly accepting that they are both in school everyday. I have to fight my urge to walk around in a daze eating peanut butter M&M's and drinking diet dr. pepper. I am really thankful I am staying busy at school as Room Mom.  I have a half marathon coming up in November that I need to start seriously training for.......AHH!  I have so much other stuff going on with friends and family that I devote my time to as well. Everywhere I look I see people in need and projects that I could give my time to, so I am learning to pick and choose and know that I can't save everyone.

We are blessed and life is good.

Ch-Ch-Changes

I haven't written on the blog for so long because I really don't know where to start.

Do I write about my feelings of Ryan starting Kindergarten? That is more of a book, not just a blog post. (Oh, and he can't get out of the car fast enough in the morning.)

About how I feel so strange about turning 36? (And no, I didn't just have to use a calculator to figure out how old I am. Maybe.)

About how I really don't like change. I remember being so upset when my Mother wanted to go from colored lights to all white lights on our Christmas tree. So, both of my babies being in school everyday is a big deal.

About my Dad calling last night to tell me about how he is updating their will and that I needed to know some of the details. I put my fingers in my ears and said "lalala....I'm not listening." Because if I don't listen and don't know then I don't have to think about it and it's not real.

The blog post that I could write if I chose to think about everything is so cliched that I almost can't bear my own thoughts. I'm not the only person that has had their baby start Kindergarten. I'm not the only person to experience these weird growing pains. Now that everyone in my house can go to the bathroom and brush their teeth BY THEMSELVES, what is my purpose? I know, parenting never ends. But it sure is easier when your worries are sleeping, eating, and changing diapers.

And now to finish this cliche of a blog post, I will leave you with the words of Stevie Nicks. She wrote Landslide at age 27. She is now 62 and still rocking.

Well I've been afraid of changing cause I've built my life around you.
But time makes you bolder
Children get older
I'm getting older too

Cookies

I have wanted to organize pictures of my cookies for quite a while. These are some of the pictures I could find pretty quickly. I know there have been more. I thought I would share them with you all. I know my sweet friend, Linda, will especially appreciate them. I know you are still a loyal reader, Linda!

Baby shower cookies

Pumpkins and ghosts for Halloween party

Baseball party cookies

Penguin cookies for "P" day in Ryan's class. These were the most difficult cookies I have ever made b/c the black icing bled into the white.

Snowmen for Will's class Christmas party

Giraffe cookies for "G" day in Ryan's class. One of my all-time favorite cookies.

Angel cookies for a Christmas Cookie Party. These are probably my favorite cookies. They are so easy, yet I love how they turn out so beautiful.

Easter eggs

Personalized Easter eggs for cousins

Mickey Mouse cookies for a sweet 2 yr old birthday party.

Boys went to a soccer clinic everyday this past week. Their cousins went too and they all had a great time despite the brutal heat. Will enjoyed it and did surprisingly well even though this was the first time he had ever played soccer. He still insists that he does not want to be on a team this Fall.  Sometimes I can't figure him out for the life of me.



Afterwards they would go down and play in a creek that runs by the soccer fields. They thought this was the greatest thing they had ever done. It makes me feel like there are still some simple joys of summer left in our world. They would get sticks and rocks and dig around for stuff that only boys can find.

I am surviving the heat, however it does make me grouchy. I haven't been able to run much this summer which is adding to my sluggish/grouchy feeling. Boys go to swim lessons next week and then we will have 2 weeks left  before school starts. I am sad for myself, yet excited for them.

Will turns 8!!

My sweet angel boy

I ordered this banner for his Star Wars Lego Party. I think it turned out great!!

Picture of the food table and backyard. Amazingly, the weather turned out great for the party. There was a chance of thunderstorms but by 4:00, it was sunny and even a slight breeze coming up through our back patio.

Cousins

Will and his cake

Homemade Marshmallows!

The boys and I have gone with some friends to a new local Farmers Market here in town. It is held every Tuesday afternoon and we have gone 3 times now. We love it. It is near a big playground and pavilion with picnic tables. We have enjoyed visiting the different vendors and trying the free samples. Our favorite food truck, the Grilled Cheeserie, is always there so we have enjoyed an early dinner too.
The marshmallow truck from the Bang Candy company has been there too, so of course we had to try the ridiculously over-priced marshmallows. And we just did not think it was worth $5 for 4 tiny marshmallows.
So, we made our own following this recipe.

They were wonderful! So soft and melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Much better than store-bought and better than the ones from the over-priced gourmet marshmallow truck. We dipped some in dark chocolate, but I didn't get a good picture of those. They were very easy to make too. The hardest part was cutting them into sqaures.

I also bought some kale and made some kale chips. Not quite as successful (or popular) as the marshmallows, however.

Beach Pictures

 Brothers going to boogie board

 My beautiful boy always stops to pose for the camera

 Daily football game on the beach

 Cousins

 JW and his Dad

 I got this shot of the beach one night. I like the light and shadows.

 Ryan being silly on the beach

Will and David

I have been doing a lot of "cleaning out" this week. I have done lots of laundry and packing for our beach trip next week, but also just cleaning out and throwing away too.

I found an old notebook under a seat in my car that contained notes I took from a sermon I heard months ago. Some of you may be familiar with Randy Harris.  This is the sermon he gave when he was a guest speaker at our church. It was a powerful message.

10 Ways to Live the Kingdom of God:

1. Memorize Scripture. Especially the Sermon on the Mount.
 I fall so short here. I do not teach my boys to memorize enough scripture either. I think this is why he makes this point #1.

2. Quit Whining. We are raising a generation of entitled people. Think about our grandparents generation of Christians.
Wow. Good point. I cannot remember hearing my West TN Grandmother or Grandfather ever utter a complaint.

3. Make a covenant with God and with each other. And keep your covenants.

4. Take a risk. Get involved in something outside your comfort zone. Live Romans 8 about "daring to trust God."

5. Walk- start to move, stroll, hang out, and see where God leads you.
I really like this one. For me this also includes running. I learned so much training for the half marathon. About myself and others. Sometimes you just have to get moving and see where you go.

6. Relocate yourself. Get outside of your "church."

7. Be Calm. Be Prayerful. Stay Sane. Sanity is contagious and so is anxiety.

8. Simplify. Travel Light. Find out what happens when you say "No."
Awesome! Love this one. The world will not end if I throw away junk or say no to someone.

9.Commit. We live in a world where we want everything instantly. Some things require a long-term commitment.

10. Be Present. Be present where you are in this very moment. Listen for God.

Champions!

Will has been on an amazing baseball team this year. Last night they won the 7 year old division for their league. It was a great game that went into double overtime- 2 extra innings with a score of 16-15. Will scored 4 of those points! He had a great game.

I have been blown away by these boys. They have all worked so hard with a dedication that I didn't know was possible for 7 year boys. They are all respectful of each other and adults. They are all encouraging of each other and extremely positive. Not to mention many of them are already talented athletes at age 7. I guess that's why they won!

And the coaches! Wow! These guys have been so amazing to watch coach. They have put in countless hours and time away from their families and jobs. I know it has been a true joy for them, though, so last night was just the icing on the cake.

At the beginning of the season I complained about having 2 boys playing baseball because it meant so much time for me at the ballfield. I have realized this is just the beginning! Last night was so exciting. We were screaming, hugging and many of us crying at the end! We all went out as a team last night and celebrated. We didn't get our boys into bed until 10:00. But it was worth it.

 John Will kept telling Will to remember this feeling forever. He won't be on many teams that win the championship game. But, he was last night and it was amazing!

Marathon Weekend

Wow! What a great weekend! As I have mentioned on here before, I decided in December to run the half marathon. I started training in January. I literally started with 2 miles and worked my way up to about 8. (I was supposed to go up to 10 but never made it.) The big day was Saturday. We were blessed with the most perfect weather. In the midst of all the horrible storms, Saturday dawned cool and sunny. Start time temp was around 59 degrees. No humidity. Perfect running weather.

I had very low expectations for myself and was just hoping to have fun and finish. My friend Melissa is the perfect running partner for me. We both run fairly slow, but she is a strong runner and keeps me going. I was hoping to finish around 2 hr 45 min. and we finished at 2 hr 49 min. So, not bad for my first time.



I really felt great until right after mile 11. Then both my hips started hurting and pain was shooting down from my hips to my upper legs. I was pretty much in pain until the finish line. I didn't want to stop for too long because I knew I would never get started back again. We walked a little bit and Melissa just kept me going, pointing out the mile 12 sign, then the mile 13 sign, then we rounded our last corner and saw the finish line! We were both in tears at that point. Relief, happiness, and a huge sense of pride in what we had just accomplished. At one point we were running next to a woman pushing her husband in a wheelchair. That kind of put things in perspective for me.

So, overall, my first half marathon experience was pretty close to perfect. Being a part of something with 31.000 others is simply amazing. Seeing the thousands of people that come out just to cheer on the runners and walkers is also amazing. What a sight to behold! People lining street after street with parties spilling out their front doors onto their front lawns, holding signs, bands playing music, cheering, yelling, and slapping high fives to everyone that runs by! One of the best experiences of my life! I am now one of those annoying people who tries to persuade everyone I talk to that they too need to do a half marathon. It's like when you have done something so great, you want others to experience it too. Doesn't matter how old, or what size you are or what shape you are in, you could do it! It's worth it! You are worth it!

So, how do I feel today, you ask? Well, 4 ibuprofen and 9 straight hours of sleep last night, and I feel great! Ready to do it all again next year! Let me know if you want to join me!

Melissa and I waiting to start. We were in corral 26 so we had a while to wait.

Here I am at mile 8. I was still feeling good here. John Will, his parents, and my boys were all waiting for me! So great to see them! See Ryan's cute little face there in the background? Best part of the race is when we would see people we knew cheering for us!

Here we are coming up on maybe mile 9. You can see it is a slight hill so I look like I might have been walking. My parents were waiting for us at the corner and my Dad took this shot. My parents had to get up early and drive about 30 minutes into town to see the race. I was thrilled to see them!

A friend standing at mile 11 took this shot of me as I was coming up. I had no idea she was going to be there so I was really surprised to see her. So fun! Again, one of the best parts of the race!

Will ran in the Kids Marathon downtown at LP Field on Friday night. That was also a lot of fun! All the kids from his school had matching t-shirts. They did great. Fun to see so many kids and parents out running.

Ryan is 5!!

I am a week late updating the blog, but wanted to share a few pictures from Ryan's birthday. (Today, the 11th, was his actual due date.) We had some friends from his class at school and family to a little bowling alley/arcade party. His cake was Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb. He loves that show right now. It was low-key and the kids all had a blast. I am over the shock and starting to accept the fact that he is 5. We go to the pediatrician tomorrow for his 5 year check-up and shots. My kids are really amazing with shots. It is usually no big deal, so for that I am thankful. We still might need some Sweet CiCi's afterwards for Mommy :)

Blessings.

So many blessings in our life. So thankful for the little piece of universe God has put me in for such a short time.

1. Thankful that both my boys had a great start to baseball season this week. They both enjoyed their games and had fun. I have complained about having them both playing this year because it means double the time at the ball field. But, I still wouldn't trade them for two girls.

2. Thankful for my sweet boys and their good health. My baby turns 5 on Sunday. I am taking this birthday pretty hard. 5 is a big number.

3. Thankful that I was able to run a total of 14 miles this week! Half marathon is less than a month away now!

4. Thankful that my friends and I were able to find the Grilled Cheeserie Truck today at lunch! So fun! We had a yummy lunch "tailgate" style in a parking lot. Food trucks are very popular in Nashville now. Next up, the Marshmallow Truck- no joke!

5. So thankful for the good news I have received this week regarding two special people I have been praying for that are having health- related issues. God is so good!

Procrastination

Ryan turns 5 in 12 days.

There is a stack of birthday party invitations sitting on my kitchen counter that I have not sent.

There is a green folder sitting on my dining table full of very important forms that I must fill out and return to our elementary school so he will be enrolled for Kindergarten in the Fall. Not a single one has been touched. Many of these forms require me to actually do something, like obtain a birth certificate, have forms notorized, obtain proof of address, have health forms completed, etc. 

These forms are not going to fill out themselves. Invites are not going to distribute themselves, either.

So, I will just sit here and blog about it instead. It makes me feel better. Because thinking about the other makes me want to vomit.

Frist Student Art Show

Will was one of two first graders from his school that had artwork chosen for the Frist Student Art Show.

I will admit, I think I was much more excited than Will. But, maybe someday he will appreciate the fact that he had his artwork hanging at the Frist! Probably a once in a lifetime event. We went to the opening day for family last Sunday.

Will and his art teacher

Will's artwork. A castle done in oil pastel

Will and his museum certificate

My beautiful boy. I can't believe how old he looks in this picture.

Ryan and Will. Ryan was quite the handful that day. A crowded art museum is not the place for a wild 4 1/2 year old.