*Happy* 1st blog award

Well, I'm pretty excited! I got my first blog award! When I saw this today I did a little happy dance. I needed a pick me up! Thank you so much Jennifer! Check out her cute blog The Getts Times !
So here's the award:

The rules for this award are:
1 . When you have received this award you must thank the person that awarded you the award in a new post.
2 . Name 10 things that make you happy.
3 . Pass this award onto 10 bloggers and inform them.

Ten things that make me happy:
1. My girlie girls! The pic below is one of my favs...oldie but goodie =)

2. My hubby. He is the best hubby and daddy ever!

3. Pedicures!

4. Singing =) At church, karaoke, whatever....just singing. I love it.
5. Family and friends! I could post so many pics here. I am a family person big time! I really enjoy being with my family and my inlaws too! I have a handful of friends who have been there through thick and thin...so they are really family too!
6. Photography. I love taking pics. I love learning about taking better pics. I love editing pics. I am not aspiring to be a professional, but I am enjoying being a novice.

7. Crafts! I don't have much time for crafts at all with two young'uns but I've always enjoyed it! Lately I've been contemplating buying a silhouette sd. I want one so bad but I keep thinking, is it worth the money just to feed my need to craft. The need I have no time for? Ha, ha! We'll see!!!
8. Blogging. =) I am really enjoying the world of blogging. I started this blog to inform family of our happenings. But as I've ventured outside that realm a bit I've enjoyed making new friends!
9. The beach! Any beach with white sand and warm temps! Here's a shot from our last beach trip...it's been WAAAY to long!

10. This one is way up there. Diet Mountain Dew. Yup. I said it. A soft drink can make me happy. Please don't ever end up 'bad' for me. I don't want to end our life long love affair.
I am passing this award on to the following bloggers:

1. Cristal @ the 8 o'clock hour

2. Joy @ My JOY-filled Life!!

3. Meghan @ The Carrolls

4. Katie @ Cleared For Takeoff

5. Tracey @ The Way I See It

6. Anna @ The Happy Heflins

7. Pouty Princess @ The Pouty Pink Princess

8. Kelly - I would love to have you on this list. I so enjoy reading your blog! Since it's private I'm obviously not linking. But it's one of my fav reads for sure! =)

Katie

Katie is still in ICU. They were able to take her off the ventilator and she is breathing on her own. I thank God for that. She had a really restless night and day, though this afternoon has gotten a little better. She is still in need of prayer. Deep prayer. The doctors are saying it could be up to 5 days before she is conscious again. Please continue to remember her and her parents and grandparents in prayer. Also please pray for her Aunt who was driving. Emotionally I can't imagine her pain either. She loves Katie so much and this is really hard on her in many ways. Here is a picture of our sweet Katie from just a few weeks ago at my daughters bday party.
As her grandpa calls her "Katie, katie, sweet potatee"

Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world.
Red, brown, yellow, black, and white
Katie you are precious in HIS sight.
Jesus loves the little children of the world.

Please pray for my niece!

My niece and her aunt were involved in a car accident today. It is serious stuff. My niece is in ICU and unconscious. They have her on a machine to help her breathe right now. There have been a couple of positive signs. I understand she has blinked and tried to talk to my stepdad. This baby is only five years old. I can't fathom what her parents are going through right now. I know she's a fighter. She can pull through this. Please pray with me, agree with me in prayer that she will pull through this. That she will make a FULL recovery ASAP. Her parents are hurting and I KNOW my stepdad is about to lose his mind. I ask you to add them to your prayers as well.
Dear God, I pray that angels surround them all. I pray that your Holy Spirit would be there to comfort them. Give them a sense of calm when they are speaking to physicians and the ability to digest everything being said. Give the physicians WISDOM to KNOW what to do. Keep my niece out of any pain and please do not let her be fearful. Let her feel the love of all of her family and friends surrounding her and rallying to be with her at this moment. I pray that every ounce of her strength would rise up to defeat this. I believe that you are a God of miracles and my niece deserves one. I pray that she would make an astounding recovery and be every bit the lively, intellegent, and beautiful little girl she has always been. I pray that this is only a bump in the road to her wonderful future. I thank you for all of these things. In Jesus precious name...Amen!
Mathew 18:19 "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven."

I heart Thursdays!

I am participating in this weeks I "heart"... at You and Me Plus Three. Go there now to add yours and read others!!

i ~♥~ sunny days!

i ~♥~ that our audit is over at work and it is now going to be ANNUAL!

i ~♥~ that my lil' cupcake is blowing kisses now!

i ~♥~ using my 'alternate' lense! I let a friend borrow my normal lense and tried out my backup. Had it since I got the camera and never used it. It's a new fav!

i ~♥~ my princess is beginning to talk non stop...really i do!

i ~♥~ my hubby. He is awesome. Works full time, going to college part time, and still a great daddy and hubby.

i ~♥~ that my MIL got plane reservations to visit us soon! =)

i ~♥~ that I finally started back hard core on the diet! I am ready to be back to myself!

Faith

I've read several blogs lately talking about having Faith in God for various things. For some it's faith in getting a new job, some faith that God is in control over this healthcare bill passing, some it's faith for a spouse, others have faith for a child. We serve a God who is so Faithful. Our timing and His timing may not coincide and sometimes that makes it so difficult for us as humans. But His timing is perfect. His timing is what keeps us in His will.
Today I got a Word of the Day on my facebook account from my favorite tv minister...Joel Osteen. I think I am so drawn to his messages because they are not negative. They encourage me to grow in the Lord. The messages are encouraging. These days we all need that!
Today's verse that was shared is : “For the vision is yet for an appointed time…though it tarries, wait for it” (Habakkuk 2:3, KJV).
Joel's message:

God has an appointed time to fulfill the visions, dreams, and desires in your heart. Just because it has taken a long time or because you’ve tried and failed doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen. Don’t give up on those dreams! Don’t be complacent about pursuing what God has placed in your heart. Our God is a faithful God. No matter how long it’s been, no matter how impossible things look, if you’ll stay in faith, your set time is coming.

Remember, every dream that’s in your heart, every promise that has taken root, God put it there. Not only that, but He has every intention of bringing it to pass. Hold on to that vision today. Declare by faith, “My time is coming. God is working behind the scenes on my behalf. I will fulfill my destiny!” As you continue to hold on to that vision and speak life over your dreams, it won’t be long before you see them begin to take shape. You’ll see your faith grow, you’ll see your hope strengthen, and you’ll see yourself step into the destiny God has prepared for you!

Prayer for Today: Father in heaven, I receive Your Word which is life and health to me today. I ask that You ignite my heart with Your holy fire so that I can pursue Your perfect plan for my life. Make my thoughts and words agreeable to Your will. In Jesus’ Name, Amen. "

I will share with you the story of two times in my life where I stayed in Faith and witnessed God's plan unfold.

1. I prayed to become a mother for several years. I was married and it just wasn't happening. I had an invasive surgery to prepare me for fertility. A month later the man I was married to told me he wanted a divorce. What was I to do? I prayed. I stayed in faith. God didn't put that desire in my heart to be a wife and mother for no reason. I believed He was going to fulfill it! I marched on through the divorce with prayer and faith. God helped me through that time. I always new He had a plan for me that I just didn't see yet. I met my husband and he has blessed us with two wonderful daughters. It was going to be all in HIS time. I now have a faithful husband who is an AWESOME father. I could not see how in control God was for me at the time, but I had faith that he was.


2. I've talked about my hubby being deployed recently. The circumstances were not just a normal thing. He'd been stoplossed just two months before his contract was up with the Guard. We'd already determined he would not re-up. How could this be happening. What were we to do? Pray. We prayed...daily, even hourly sometimes! I believed God for a miracle. That somehow he would not have to go. The time came and he left us. I was sad, but life had to go on for my girls. I kept myself in an attitude of faith. I woke up everyday and thanked God in advance for my hubby's early return. I told him when we talked he didn't have long to go because I had FAITH that God would return him to our family quickly.
I continued to pray. I continued to have Faith in God. I believed that he would not spend the timeframe over there that was given to us by the Guard. I continued to believe my God was bigger than the Army. Let me tell you, HE IS! My husband came home a few months early! This was just a very quick and almost unbelievable happening. He didn't end up missing the lil' cupcakes first birthday, he didn't end up missing Christmas, he didn't even miss Halloween or Thanksgiving! WOW, just WOW! How awesome is that?!

What about you? Do you have any stories to share about how you have stayed in Faith and seen God move?

Typical Spring Afternoon

When we got home from work daddy wanted to do a little yard work. Our yard is a HOT MESS! We quit having it treated while daddy was deployed so we could have someone mow it for me!
Since daddy was spraying chemicals all over I decided to take the girls for a wagon ride. It started off with the girls holding their "flower" the princess picked and talking like this:

And this...

Then a certain someone wouldn't stay seated. She was adamant she wasn't going to sit. She'd had a rough ride home with lots of crying (I think she was just overly tired and she is also still cutting teeth). At any rate I ended up holding her.
Ofcourse after I got cupcake out the ride just wasn't the same so the Princess also wanted out.

The lil' cupcake was wanting to run around. No one was in the cul de sac so I quickly ran in front of her to get a quick snap shot before we headed back to the part of the yard daddy hadn't treated yet.
The princess wasn't far behind.
I went to put Cupcake in the yard so I could go back for the wagon and she threw a fit! Reminded me SO much of the Princess after a wagon ride when she just a little older (but about the same size). See any family resemblence? These girls let you know when you've interrupted their world. LOL!
After we got calmed down the girls took turns on all the millions of ride on toys we have.


Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer so I hope we get home early enough to get out and play some more! I just love a typical spring afternoon, don't you?!
Have a blessed day!

Diet!

I finally started back on my diet today! For those who don't know I gained a TON of weight with my Princess. This might tell you a little...I lost 60lbs of it. Then, I got preggers with the lil' cupcake! I gained 40lbs and I've lost that 40lbs. But I have a WAYS to go to get ready for the summer. Since the Princess is now 3, and I'm officially off the menu, I figure I have no exuse. I am an all or nothing kind of person. So once I get over the initial 'hunger' phase, I think I will be fine. Wish me luck in this journey to get my body back pre-baby! When the effects of no longer nursing are not ailing me I plan to get moving in the mornings with Denise Austin again! Oh, so since I'm announcing so much on my blog, I am going to keep it real. Here is a full body pic of me from November. Nothing has changed. I look like a BLOB up aside my bestie, who still has that gorgeous tiny waist-line! Just as an FYI I may be MIA the next few days. I am really busy at work right now and I'm sure with the new diet I will be really tired when I get home. Hopefully I will resume soon!

Happy Birthday Mom!

My mom's birthday was Thursday! I took her to lunch that day and we enjoyed some chic-fil-a...her choice. Here is a pic of her and my stepdad from Christmas.


This weekend I made her strawberry cupcakes with creamcheese icing (my maw's recipe) and ofcourse the Princess sprinkled the cupcakes with pink sprinkles. The weekend has been so busy I didn't get a chance to snap any pics. We met my mom and stepdad and my brother at Rosie's for dinner Saturday night. She got her cupcakes and gifts then. I ran off without a camera!!!! For SHAME! I can't believe I did that. I hope she had a good one...we sure tried to make it special!

My 'little' brother

What's been going on around here? My brother and his friend have been heading up to Nashville, TN to play at the BLUE BIRD cafe!!!! How stinkin' awesome is that?! I am so jealous. For those who do not know me I *LOVE* to sing. And a love for all things music runs in my family. My brother is an awesome musician.

Josh and his buddy, Dustin, also very talented, have been getting together and writing songs and just being uber talented. Check out some of the action shots below (I totally swiped these off of his facebook account, but I HAD to brag! I am so proud of him!)


Have a blessed weekend!

I *heart* Thursdays!

It's time for I ♥ Thursday's again!




I love to look back on the week and remember why this week was special! So Check it out at You and Me Plus Three. Go there now to add yours and read others!!

i ~♥~ my mom. Today is her birthday!
i ~♥~ that my lil' cupcake has a new buddy at daycare
i ~♥~ that the hubby pitching in on the housework!
i ~♥~ the health of my family. I think we are all flu free!
i ~♥~ that Easter is on it's way! And the ADORABLE Easter dresses I got the girls this week!
i ~♥~ that I had such a peaceful ride home yesterday...only one baby and she slept!
i ~♥~ the princess is dressing up with all my jewelry now! Too cute!
i ~♥~ having my hubby back safe and sound...I keep getting reminded how good it is he got back safely!
i ~♥~ sales! Good good sales!
i ~♥~ sleeping ALL NIGHT LAST NIGHT!!!!!! That may be my favorite this week! ;o)

Par-tay! *SHOE* Par-tay!!!!

Today I am linking up with Beth at The Stories of A to Z for the SHOW ME YOUR SHOES party! Oh, Beth, how I *LOVE* this idea!!! Check out hers and others by clicking on the CUTE button below!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE shoes! I shop EVERYWHERE for them. These days, I am finding MUCH of what I LOVE at Tarjay! YES people, TARJAY! They have many shoes made by Mossimo that look SO MUCH like Steve Madden shoes! It's crazy! And my love for shoes is typically what is in for the moment. So I don't like to spend too much money on them so I can have LOTS of pairs. =) So for my target round up. Check out these cutie patooties I got last season! I *heart* these ruffled babies. And that wedge makes them COMFY!

Next up, and also from Tarjey, this cute sandal high heel. Also with my favorite girlie touch...ruffle!
Now I got these last year. There are/have been TONS of gladiators running around town. I am short fun sized and the hubby is a GIANT. So I prefer a heel. I found the perfect gladiator for me... check it double deck it!!!!!
Now on to this year's crop. I found these birk-a-likes dressed up in goldish and blings. They are perfect for a day at the beach or SHOPPING. LURVE 'em! And they are COMFY too!

Not to be out done, I found a goldish heel I love...with more of that girlie touch but a little different ruffle-dee!
Next up, what I am getting. I love these silver YellowBoxes. They are CALLING my name.
And these little zebra with the hot pink trim...again, calling my name from Belk in the yellowbox isle!

Now, to quote a friend of mine's son...(I told her I was SO stealing this saying, love it!)
Let's go get FLIP FLOP FRESH!